A Caged Bird
by angellwings
Summary: She made a life for herself in Smallville. She had friends, and family. But . . . she was hiding. And as much as she wanted to she couldn't be Bonnie Cardinal forever. COMPLETED!
1. Prologue

A Caged Bird

by angellwings

Prologue: Farmer Brown

She ducked behind a barn and licked her lips at a crop of delicious looking golden corn. Her stomach grumbled loudly and she groaned in exasperation. She'd been on the run for nearly six months now, and gone with out food for about a week as well. Just a little bit of corn . . . this farm won't miss it that much, right?

Her hunger took over and sprinted for the cornfield. She grabbed desperately at the stalks, and chomped furiously at the raw ear of corn.

"Hello?" A deep voice called, "Is someone there?"

_Shit, _she thought as she shoved all of her harvested corn into her messenger bag. She gulped and ran silently into the rest of the field. Her martial arts training helped her sneak stealthily through the corn. She heard rustling not far behind her and sped up her pace. She couldn't be caught . . . or discovered.

"Can't afford your own groceries?" A voice asked as she ran into a solid chest.

Her vision collided against a pair of solid, broad, shoulders and a blue T-shirt.

"I-how? But you were-weren't you behind me just a few seconds ago?" She asked in shock as she tilted her head upward to see her captor's face. Her breath caught. He was cute, dark hair, blue eyes, square jaw.

He squinted at her, and observed her ragged appearance. Her black baby tee was worn and tattered around the base of the shirt and edges of the sleeves, her jeans were torn and smudged with all kinds of dark stains and mud, her pink chuck sneakers had hole in the heels and the toes and the sole had begun to peel away from the rest of the shoe.

"Who are you?" He asked her with a bit of concern growing in her eyes.

"Somebody who is running away from you." She snapped as she swiped her leg across his calves and caused him to fall backwards, and took off into the corn again.

A few feet later she collided with the same chest, and this time the force caused her to fall on to her butt, "If you need food my mom and I will give you food. You don't need to steal it."

"I don't need any charity, thanks." She said bitterly as she pulled herself up.

"No offense, but it doesn't look that way." He said with a small grin.

"What the hell are you anyway? No one on Earth can possibly run that fast." She said as she continued to dust herself off.

"Oh, I can think of at least one." He said with a chuckle.

She rolled her eyes, "Whatever, look just don't call the cops okay?"

"Why, are they looking for you?"

"No, no . . . I just can't afford to be slowed down at the moment." She said through gritted teeth, "Can I go now, Farmer Brown?"

"Clark? What's going on? Did you find something?" A feminine voice asked as he stepped toward then through the corn she stopped suddenly when her eyes landed on the girl, "Oh, come in to the house, we'll get you something to eat."

The woman smiled and wrapped an arm around her, "and maybe a change of clothes, huh?"

"I . . . I can't . . ." She said reluctantly.

"Sure you can, look, we're offering you free food, free clothes, and a free bed. You can't find that anywhere else." Clark said with a friendly smile. He extended a hand in her direction, "Clark Kent."

She eyed him suspiciously and hesitantly accepted, "Dinah Lance"

"This is my mom, Martha Kent." He said as he motioned to the woman whose arm was wrapped around her.

"Welcome to Smallville, Dinah." Martha said as she squeezed her shoulders.

"Um . . . thanks, I think." She said as she let her and Clark lead her toward their farm house.

* * *

_Cue opening credits, "Somebody Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaave meee!"_

_lol._

_this is just a teaser for what I hope will be on the way, Enjoy!_

_angellwings_


	2. Smallville, Kansas

A Caged Bird

Chapter One: Smallville, Kansas

by angellwings

Dinah yawned and stretched from underneath the warm covers. She smiled to herself and sighed happily, and then a thought hit her. Where was she?

Memories flashed through her head, she was running, she stopped in a corn field, ran into a big blue set of muscles, a cup of coffee, a set of Farmer Brown's HUGE Pjs, and now she was waking up in a strange room.

She was in Smallville, Kansas.

She frantically reached for the clock on the nightstand to her right. It was 10:30 in the morning. She had to get out of here. Luthorcorp was after her, not to mention the entire Gotham police department. She jumped out of the bed and went to grab for her clothes off the vanity chair, but they weren't there. She cursed inwardly, and inspected the clothing she was currently wearing. A pair of extremely baggy flannel pajama pants and a huge white t-shirt. She tied her insanely messy blond hair up into a pony tail, and sprinted down the stairs.

"I have to get out of here." She announced as the kitchen came into view, but froze suddenly when two light blond and dark blond heads came into view.

"Have a little party last night, Smallville?" The dark blond girl said with an audible smirk.

"Holy shit." Dinah said as she bit her bottom lip.

Clark's eyes went wide and he awkwardly cleared his throat, "Lois, Chloe, this is Dinah. We found her stealing our corn last night."

"So, naturally, you offer her room and board." Chloe said sarcastically with a smile as she observed Dinah, "and your pajamas."

"Not to ruin the roasting, but I need my clothes back." Dinah said as she turned on Clark, "I have to leave . . . now."

"What do you mean? Where are you going?" He asked in confusion.

"Far away from Kansas," She said with a sigh and glanced apprehensively at Chloe and Lois, "Thanks for all the charity, really, but if I don't leave now I'll be found and that is the last thing I need. So, you know, if you don't mind . . . let's hurry with the clothes."

"Umm, can't . . . they're still in the washing machine." He said with a grimace.

"Damn it." She cursed as Martha Kent walked through the door.

"Dinah, what are these?" She demanded as she slammed a flyer down on the table.

The flyer had a large picture of her in the middle, and said the word "Missing" across the top in all capital letters. On the bottom there was a cash reward and the Luthercorp label.

"This," She said pointing to the flyer, "Is why I have to get out of here in a hurry."

"Where are you missing from exactly?" Chloe asked with a merged brow.

"Look . . . I'm not exactly normal, okay? I have certain powers."

"Like what? You run at super speed or something?" Lois asked as she rolled her eyes.

"No, I have a super sonic scream." She said with a serious glare in Lois' direction.

"Oh," Lois said with wide eyes as she clenched her jaw shut.

"You know what? We are just going to leave the three of you guys alone so you can discuss this." Chloe said nervously with a fake smile, "C'mon, Lois."

She jerked her cousin out the door and ignored her protests.

"Please, don't turn me in. I can't go back there." She begged Mrs. Kent.

"Go back where?" Clark asked.

She sighed, "Luthorcorp. The minute the Luthors get their hands on a freak like me they can't help but do a few experiments. I've been running and hiding from them for the last six months, but they always find me."

Clark and Martha exchanged startled glances.

"We're not going to turn you in, but you can't keep running like this." Martha told her practically

"Well, I can't stay here. They have pictures of me up all over town."

"So . . . we change your appearance, die your hair, get you a pair of glasses . . . No one will know." Clark suggested thoughtfully.

"I don't get you people, why are you so nice?" She asked suspiciously.

"Because we understand what it's like." Martha said as she placed a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"You understand what it's like to be treated like a criminal because of the abilities you can't control?" She dead panned.

"No, but we know what it's like to have to hide a part of who you are in order to survive." Clark told her sincerely as he walked to the silverware drawer on the other side of the kitchen.

"Oh really? How can you possibly know that?" She challenged.

Clark looked to his mother for approval, and when she nodded he grabbed a steak knife and shoved it into his chest.

"What the hell are you doing!" Dinah screamed as she ran across the kitchen to stop him.

She gulped when nothing gushed from the area he had stabbed himself. He held up the knife for her to see. All of the metal and even part of the wooden handle was bent completely in half.

"I've got powers as well, several of them as a matter of fact." He stated with a sheepish grin.

"Oh my God." She stated simply as she stared at the spot on Clark's stomach the _should_ be bleeding, "How is that possible?"

"It's a long story . . . but I'm not exactly human."

"Then what are you? Alien?" She asked with a smirk.

"Actually, yes, I am. I'm from a planet called Krypton." He said simply as he leaned back against the kitchen counter. She stared at him in surprise until another thought came to her.

"Wait a minute, then are you alien too?" She asked Martha Kent.

"No, my husband and I adopted Clark when he was younger." She answered steadily.

She nodded as if trying to take it all in, "Okay. Um . . . I guess I'll stay, for a little while anyway."

"Do you not have any family?" Clark asked in concern.

"Not unless you count a drug addicted mother who lives in The Narrows of Gotham City." She answered bitterly.

"Gotham? Is that where you grew up?" Martha asked.

"Yeah, but I didn't exactly have a happy child hood. Gotham is far from 'home' for me." Dinah answered with with out a smile.

"Well, let's get to work on changing your appearance . . . before Lionel shows up." She said with a soft smile as she squeezed Dinah's shoulder, "I'm gonna go to the drug store and get you some hair color."

"Mrs. Kent?" She called as Martha walked toward the back door. She turned quickly, and looked at Dinah expertantly, "Thanks for this."

"It's no problem at all." She said with a smile as she continued out the door.

"How did you get a mom that cool?" Dinah asked Clark with a grin.

He chuckled and shrugged his shoulders, "I wish I knew."

* * *

_If you can't tell after this chapter Dinah is Black Canary. I thought it was only fair to include her in this season since they've brought in Oliver Queen (Green Arrow)._

_Enjoy!_

_angellwings_


	3. Robin Hood

A Caged Bird

by angellwings

Chapter Two: Robin Hood

"Okay, so from now on your name is Bonnie Cardinal." Chloe told her as she handed her a fake ID, "You are Clark's cousin on Mr. Kent's side. Your mother was his sister. You've come to stay with the Kents so you can attend Central Kansas, and run the Talon while Mrs. Kent takes care of her congressional duties."

"Wow, you are really good at Bull shiting" Dinah said with an impressed expression.

Chloe smiled proudly, "Thanks."

Dinah raked a hand through her now copper, shoulder length, layered tresses, and chuckled softly at her new name. If these people only knew they would be able to find this as ironic as she did. Bonnie Cardinal . . . pretty bird . . . they were one and the same.

She glanced across the room at her beat up messenger bag that rested in a heavily cushioned chair in the corner. She shouldn't leave it sitting out like that, and what was she going to do about her costume? With out her blond hair her costume didn't have the same appeal. She needed a wig or something, but where would she find one in Smallville? And what should she do until she can find one?

"Hey listen, I want to go check out this Talon place, can you give me a ride?"

"Yeah, sure, I need to grab some stuff from Lois' apartment anyway." Chloe answered with a nod.

"Thanks."

* * *

She walked up and down main street browsing the store windows. She was looking for a wig shop or for some idea on how to hide her identity. She stopped when her eyes fell on a vintage clothing store. In the window there was a mannequin that displayed a long, black, hooded, vinyl coat. She stepped inside and inspected the coat. The hood was deep. It would certainly cover the majority of her face. She pulled her small stash of cash out of her bag and told the sales woman that she wanted to buy that coat. It took the majority of her money, but it was worth it. Now she needed something to cover her eyes. Sunglasses? No that would make everything too dark. Especially if she worked at night. There has to be something . . . she needed a pair of non-geeky looking goggles. 

But for now the coat would have to do.

She turned around and headed back toward the Talon. She started her first shift as manager in a couple of hours. Oh joy.

* * *

Okay, so it was her first day at the Talon, but how was it that she knew more about coffee and how to serve it than her three waitresses did? They had already broken three mugs. How the heck does Martha Kent deal with all of this? And why had she agreed to this? Why had she even told them her secret? 

She knew why. It had been a moment of weakness. She wanted to leave as soon as possible, and they just kept shooting her questions. She didn't have time for that. She had hoped that answering them would get them off her back, but no. They were still there, the only thing that had changed was what they knew about her, which she had now decided was too much. Lois had been coming by all day. Dinah could tell she was dying to ask her some questions, and Chloe had been over enunciating her new alias every time she came in.("Hey BONNIE", "How are you, BONNIE?")

She cringed as she heard another mug crash to the ground somewhere to her right. She turned to find it's source when a voice interrupted her.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for Lois Lane . . . do you know . . ."

She turned on the voice sharply, "She's in the apartment upstairs . . ."

"Dinah?" He asked curiously.

Her eyes went wide with fear as his blond hair flashed in front of her eyes.

"Ollie?" She asked in a harsh whisper, "What are you doing here?"

"I have business in Metropolis." He answered mysteriously.

"Robin Hood business?" She asked with a wicked grin.

"Not that it's any of _your_ business . . ." He sneered.

"Whatever," She said as she rolled her eyes, "Look, if anyone asks, you don't know me. You haven't told anyone about your, uh, . . . alter-ego?"

"Do I look insane?" He asked sarcastically.

She scowled at him, "No, but you do look like a jack ass, do you have to be such an annoying little rich boy all the time?"

"Mr. Queen?" Lois asked from the stairs, "I wasn't expecting you."

"I'm sorry I should have called," He said as he shoved off of the counter, "I came to speak to you about Martha Kent's campaign."

"Like hell you did." She mumbled scathingly to him before he approached Lois.

He ignored her and continued his conversation.

* * *

It was probably time she call Babs or Bruce. Barbara was more than likely going crazy with worry, and besides, she needed her Canary Cycle. 

She checked to make sure the house was empty, and then dialed the untraceable number that Bruce had given her when she left Gotham.

"Dinah?" a male voice answered.

"Bruce. Is Barbara there?"

"She's out with Dick actually." He said in a dull tone.

"I'm sure that absolutely thrills you. Romantic entanglements on the field, and all."

"Not that it matters, no one listens to me."

She laughed, "No, actually the only people who don't listen to you are Dick and Babs. I know that I'm terrified of you."

"Funny." He said darkly.

"I thought so. Just tell her that I will call her back tomorrow afternoon, please." She said with a small smile.

"Of course."

"Talk to you later, Bruce." She said as she hung up, and then she wondered if she should have said something about Ollie.

Bats has always been a little wary of Oliver, he thinks his actions are a little extreme. Dinah, personally, thought there was a lot of merit to the way he does things.

As a matter of fact she had a little bit of Oliver Queen type business to take care of at Luthorcorp. It was time Level 3 be exposed and it's victims receive justice. No government or state funded organization was ever going to do anything about it. So, It was up to her, and she wouldn't fail.


	4. Surprises

A Caged Bird

Chapter Three: Surprises

by angellwings

Dinah rolled her eyes as Lex and Lana walked into the Talon. Neither ever said a word to her, which she was thankful for. She was afraid she would beat Luthor's ass to a pulp if he ever even whispered in her direction, and in walked Ollie with another man at his side. She grinned as she recognized who it was. They made their way to the counter passing vicious glances at Lex along the way.

Bruce grinned, "Bonnie."

She shook her head at him, "Shut up, I gotta hide somehow."

"I don't understand why you're staying here at all. You could've come back to Gotham and hid in the cave if you wanted." He whispered as he leaned against the counter.

"The cave?" She asked flatly, "Yeah, Bruce, A dark, dank, and may I mention cold whole in a wall of rock is where I would LOVE to spend my time."

"Beats this starbucks knock off," Another voice said from behind the two men.

Dinah smiled brightly, "Babs."

"Can't get too excited about seeing each other. We don't know you remember?" Ollie stated in a whisper.

"Oh, right, umm, okay, can you bring them to the Kent Farm later?" She asked him politely.

"Fine." He said with a groan, "I told Mrs. Kent I'd talk her up anyway."

"Thanks," She said as she flashed him a genuine smile, "I'll see you guys later. By the way, did you bring my baby?"

Ollie furrowed his brow, "You have a baby?"

Barbara laughed, "No, but she does have a motorcycle."

"We brought it, but where do you want to put it?" Asked Bruce.

"There's an old shed at the farm we can hide it in, just bring it when you come tonight." She whispered.

"Ollie!" Lois called from the stairs, "Check it out the Inquisitor published my latest article."

"Oh yeah? Another Green Arrow article?" He asked as she sprinted toward him.

"Sort of, I dug up some pictures of him in Gotham with some fishnet, leather-clad, biker chick wannabe. I think they're working together or something . . . anyway most of the article is about her. The Gotham Police Department calls her the Black Canary. They say she's been wandering the streets of Gotham for like forty years, but that can't be possible." She said as she handed him a copy of the printed article and pointed to the picture, "I mean look at this woman. She is barely in her twenties there is no way she could have been around for forty years . . ."

"Lois, I hate to interrupt, but I want to introduce you to some people."

and for the first time she noticed Bruce and Barbara. Her eyes went wide and she switched from investigative reporter to Campaign Manager in a flash. Dinah was ever so thankful for that. Lois knew who Black Canary was. This was not good. Now she had to be extra careful. Damn.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Wayne, Ms. Gordon, let me introduce you to Mrs. Kent's niece." Lois said as she motioned to Dinah, "Ollie, Mr. Wayne, Ms. Gordon, this is Bonnie Cardinal."

Barbara stifled a laugh with her hand and Bruce smirked uncontrollably while Ollie grinned smugly at her again.

As they passed her to leave she heard Ollie whisper to her, "Pretty birdy want a cracker?"

and she resisted the urge to throw her serving trey at his head.

* * *

She waited anxiously for Ollie, Bruce, and Babs to arrive. Earlier she had told Clark a version of the truth. She told him Bruce and Barbara were friends from Gotham, and that she had met Ollie through Bruce, but she had said nothing about Canary, Batman, Green Arrow, or Batgirl. She didn't think Farmer Brown was quite ready for that yet. She wasn't quite sure he ever would be, as a matter of fact. She couldn't wait to get her Canary Cycle. The minute she had that she could head in to Metropolis for some much needed research on Luthorcorp, and she had a wonderful idea on where she could find it. God bless Chloe for working at the Daily Planet and having a penchant for the abnormal. She had a hunch she could find an approximate blue print of level three in the wannabe Planet reporter's files. 

If she had known Bats, and Babs were coming she would have asked them to bring her a blond wig or a mask or something, but apparently no one tells her anything any more.

As she looked out her bedroom window she could see the three of them leading her cylcle to the old shed she had told them about, and smiled brightly. She couldn't wait to ride again.

After they had stashed the bike they all headed toward the farm house. Clark was now waiting with her in the kitchen. She was sitting on a stool at the island while Clark leaned over the kitchen counter sipping on a glass of orange juice.

"So how do you know Bruce Wayne again?" Clark asked in confusion

"Family friend." She stated simply.

"See, but that's what I don't understand. You said the only family you had was, if I remember correctly, a drug addicted mother in the Narrows of Gotham City."

"She wasn't always like that Clark." Dinah informed him sadly.

He gave her a shocked glance, "I'm sorry, I didn't realize . . ."

"It's okay, I don't expect you to know something I didn't share." She told him with a grin.

"How did she end up the way she is now?"

"There was a guy in Gotham, he used to go around kidnapping and torturing people just for his own perverted pleasure. He used hallucinogens to make people see the things they most fear. The papers called him 'the Scarecrow' . . . he got a hold of my mom when I was 13. He pumped her so full of drugs that she thought she couldn't survive with out them." She told him with a sigh.

She, of course, left out the part about her mom teaming up with Bruce to capture and take down the Scarecrow. She couldn't tell him who her mother really used to be. She was the original Black Canary, a crime fighter to her core. Dinah often thought her mother had more guts than she did. She fought without a single special power. She defended people for most of her life, and what did it get her? A tortured existence that depended on a lethal drug.

"Bruce's parents were friends of my mom's, and when they died she would visit him a lot and help Alfred, his butler, raise him. After the Scarecrow thing Bruce helped mom out all he could. Paid for a failed rehab stint, for private home care, my private school education, and, well, took care of my financial needs in general. He's kind of like the older brother I never had." She finished just as Oliver knocked on the door, and he, Bruce, and Babs walked through the door.

Barbara immediately gave her a hug, "It's so good to FINALLY see you again."

"How did you escape from Luthorcorp?" Bruce asked, not wanting to waste time.

"How do you think? Standard issue Wild Cat training." She told him with a grin, "Anyway, Bruce, Barbara this is Clark Kent, and Clark this is Barbara Gordon and Bruce Wayne. Clark and his mom are letting me stay with them until things calm down and I can get out of here."

"So, Bruce tells me you've been on the run for six months now? How is it possible that you are still in Smallville?" Oliver asked her skeptically.

"I've run back and forth, Gotham, Central City, Bludhaven, even Star City on occasion, but I came back to Smallville to investigate a little bit." She told them with a mischievous grin, "and got a little hungry on the way out of town."

Clark chuckled at her, "A little? You were chowin' down on raw corn like it was a turkey leg on Thanksgiving."

"You try not eating for a week and then tell me what you would do?" She jested good naturedly.

"Thanks for taking care of her for us, by the way." Barbara said with a smile at Clark.

"It's not a problem, really." He said with a nod, "She's been a big help so far."

She rolled her eyes and shoved his shoulder lightly, "Thanks, Farmer Brown."

"I'll leave the four of you to catch up." Clark said with a grin, "It was nice meeting all of you, and good to see you again, Oliver."

They voiced their agreements as Clark headed up the stairs to his room.

"He's nice." Barbara said with a wicked smile, "And extremely built, I might add."

Dinah grinned, "I know. You can't help but notice when you run into his chest at full speed."

"Are you telling me you have feelings for _Kent?_" Oliver asked in disbeleif.

"Why? _Jealous_, Queeny?" She asked him with laughing eyes.

"Definitely not." He answered adamantly, "He just doesn't seem like your type, that's all."

"You never know, life is full of surprises, Mr. Queen." She told him with a wink.

* * *

_What do you guys think? By the way I have been absolutely thrilled with the response this story has gotten. The more people respond the more I want to write, so thanks to all my readers and reviewers!_

_Enjoy!_

_angellwings_


	5. Rats in a Cage

A Caged Bird

Chapter Four: Rats in a Cage

by angellwings

She waited patiently for Clark to finally go to sleep as she sat in the darkness of her room silently listening for the snoring that would literally rip the paint off the ceiling, and finally there it was.

Time to go. She slipped on the fishnets, the corset like one piece, the gloves, the flat cuffed boots, and last but not least her new jacket. She tied her hair back, and pulled the hood over her head. She grinned to herself. Perfect.

She opened her her second floor window, and scaled the roof gracefully. She walked her bike away from the farm so as not to disturb Clark and Martha. She started her bike and inhaled the blissful, soothing, exhaust fumes. She pulled the helmet down over the hood of her jacket, and sped off toward the Daily Planet.

She glanced casually at the Metropolis night life, and grinned ruefully at the recently re-opened Club Zero. She mentally tried to estimate how many crime bosses and drug dealers were inside that club at this moment. She contemplated making a small appearance, but quickly refocused on her current mission: Chloe, Planet, Luthorcorp, Level three.

She drove around to the back of the Planet skyscraper, and hid her bike as best as possible. She needed to make it to the roof. She scanned the height of the scaffolding set up to remodel the back of the building. It went a fourth of the way up. Was there a cracked open or unlocked window? Maybe she could get in that way. Why couldn't this be a smaller building with a fire escape? She sighed in frustration.

"Need some help?" A familiar voice asked from behind her.

"What do you want, Arrow?"

"Just though I could give you a lift, Pretty Bird." He said as he launched a grappling arrow.

She rolled her eyes, "Fine."

"What are you doing in Metropolis?" He asked as they were pulled upwards.

She adjusted the position of her arms that were wrapped around his neck, "Research. How did you know I was here?"

"I followed the sound of your Canary Cycle. It's very easy to spot, you know?" He asked her with a warning glance.

"It's like that on purpose. In Gotham when people heard that cycle they got out of the way. People in Metropolis should take a hint from them. A superhero gets no respect around here." She said as they landed on the roof.

"That's because we're seen as vandals and bandits, not heroes." He told her rationally.

"Shows how much they know." She mumbled bitterly, "You got a rope ladder hidden amongst those arrows of yours?"

"Afraid not, Pretty Bird."

"If you call me that one more time, I'll call you Queeny in front of Lois, Clark, and all of your business associates." She threatened him with a growl.

"You're losing your touch, Canary. That growl used to scare me. Now I just find it amusing." He answered with a chuckle.

"You're such an arrogant ass, Arrow."

"I know." He answered with a grin.

"How in the hell do you have a girlfriend?"

"It's the Robin Hood-like charm."

"To truly be like Robin Hood wouldn't you have to be, oh I don't know, POOR." She pointed out wickedly.

He gave her a searing glare. She grinned mischievously as she opened one of the skylight windows, "Now, can we get back to the task at hand? I would love to get into the planet before the reporters start filing in."

"Yeah, hold on." He said passionlessly as he aimed another grappling arrow through the window.

"I'm sorry but I was under the impression that grappling doesn't work going down." She commented.

"Will you trust me, for once?" He asked impatiently as a cable launched from the back of the arrow as well and attached itself to the building behind them, "You ready?"

"Yeah, why not." She snapped in a bored tone. Did he always have to stick his nose in her business? She could never understand exactly why they irked each other the way they did. Was it the difference in upbringing and lifestyle? No, if that was it she wouldn't be as close to Bruce as she was. Then what was it that made them so defensive around each other?

* * *

Clark heard her sneak out of the house, and heard the faint sounds of the revving of a motorcycle. What was she up to? He ran through the cornfields along side of the road, and kept one eye on Dinah and her motorcycle. An hour and a half later he found himself in Metropolis. A back alley behind the Daily Planet to be exact. This was the first time he could fully observe her outfit. A leather one piece, a vinyl coat, and fishnet tights. He'd seen those pictures Lois used for her article, and she was definitely the woman that Oliver had been seen with.

And as if on cue Green Arrow appeared from the shadows. He watched their interaction carefully. They were more than familiar with each other. He sighed as the two of them headed for the roof. He'd go back to the farmhouse and wait to interrogate her. She wasn't telling him the whole truth.

* * *

She yanked down her hood as she silently entered the Kent's home. She hugged the huge files to her as she headed across the living room. Suddenly a lamp clicked on, and she saw Clark sitting in an armchair.

"Moon lighting in Metropolis?" He asked her.

She narrowed her eyes at him, "Were you following me?"

"When you sneak out at two o'clock in the morning people tend to notice, Dinah. Or should I call you Black Canary? Why don't you tell me the whole truth this time?" He said as he hid his temper. Lex had left him wary of any one that was only half-truthful.

"Fine, yes I am Black Canary, and until a year and a half ago I lived in Gotham, you happy?" She asked him curtly.

"No, I want to know why you broke into the Daily Planet, and while you're at it why don't you tell me exactly what your relationship is with Oliver Queen."

"Ollie? He's bossy. He's rude. He's stuck up . . . I can't stand him." She said adamantly

Clark grinned despite himself, and remembered something Lana had told him two years earlier, "The best one's always start that way."

She gave him a strange look, "Huh?"

He chuckled, "Nothing, it's just something someone told me."

"Right," She said as she rolled her eyes, "Listen, I was getting some information I needed, okay?"

His face straightened, "No, it's not okay. What are you trying to do?"

"Expose the Luthors for what they really are, Clark." She told him angrily as she threw the file down in his lap.

"What do you mean?"

"They kidnapped me, and experimented on me. They wanted to know how my abilities worked. Like I was some sort of lab rat. And after I escaped I went back to free the others, Imagine my surprise to find Level 3 deserted. Lex Luthor is an ass, and he feels no remorse in experimenting on us Metahumans." She said through clenched teeth, "Now according to those files, which by the way I grabbed from Chloe's desk, Level 3 is now Level 33.1. and I plan to give Lionel and Lex a taste of exactly what they dish out. Life as a rat in a cage. You're either with me or against me, Farmer Brown. So, take a good gander at those files and get back to me."

Dinah turned on her heels and stormed up the steps to her room.

Clark rubbed his forehead and stared at the files in his lap. He had a lot to think about.

* * *

_Tah dah! Right now I am shamelessly putting off writing a paper or working on my other stories all for this chapter. Hope you like it!_

_Enjoy!_

_angellwings_


	6. Maddie

**Author's Note: Okay, this is going to address all comic book loving people like myself. I know who Black Canary is, and I know the difference between Dinah Lance (BCI) and Dinah Laurel Lance (BCII). But we all know Smallville is not an accurate representation of the comics. If it was neither Lex nor Lois would be on the show, and just as Miller and Gough have sort of twisted the comic book universe so will I. I will stay true to BCII statistics and facts as well as her basic story lines, but there will be some MAJOR differences like for instance her mother, and her past while growing up. If you can not accept the changes to her comic book persona, I will take no offense, but rest assured I am educated on Black Canary, but am choosing to portray her MY way (which I feel is more in the Smallville style). Thank you for your opinions and criticism it is greatly appreciated.**

**Sincerely,**

**angellwings**

A Caged Bird

Chapter 5: Maddie

by: angellwings

Dinah sighed as she mulled over the latest chapter of her Introduction to Music book. How in the world could she be expected to remember the names of all these composers? She couldn't concentrate anymore instead she switched her focus to the wrinkles in the blanket she had spread out on the grass. It was a beautiful day in Smallville, and she thought it would be nice to work outside for a change, but that turned out to be a bad idea. There were a lot of people studying outside in the quad today, and they were all distracting.

"Hey," She heard a voice say as a dark shadow blocked out the sun.

"Hey Clark," She said as she looked up with a grin, "Who's your friend?"

The little girl on his right glanced shyly at her, and nibbled on her bottom lip. Dinah smiled at her. She wore a pink short sleeve cropped T-shirt with a white tank top layered underneath, and sun faded flared jeans embroidered with butterflies on the right leg. Her hair was French braided in a cute pigtails.

"This is Maddie. I promised I'd take her out for lunch, and I thought on a day like today what's better than a picnic at Central Kansas." He said with all the Kent charm he could muster.

"You picked her up and brought her to the Central Kansas A&M University quad for a picnic?" Dinah asked with suspicion.

He grinned sheepishly at her, "Maddie this is Bonnie, she's a very good friend of mine."

"It's nice to meet you Maddie, please why don't the two of you join me on my blanket, there's plenty of room." Dinah told her with a warm smile and a welcoming hand motion, "But you guys better have food for me in that backpack."

"Don't worry, I packed your favorite: Bananas, Peanut Butter, and . . . mayonnaise." He said with a disgusted face.

"Hey! Don't knock it till you try it, Farmer Brown." She said with a reprimanding finger wave.

Maddie smiled faintly and reluctantly as if she wanted laugh but was afraid to.

"So, Maddie, do you like butterflies?" Dinah asked her as she motioned to the embroidery on her jeans.

She glanced nervously to Clark, and then nodded to Dinah.

"She's a little shy." Clark told her with a soft brotherly smile.

"Oh yeah? Well that's totally cool with me, I understand perfectly. I was shy when I was a kid too, but that was because I was afraid I would hurt someone if I opened my mouth. And I don't think that's your reasoning." Dinah told her with a wink.

"Why were you afraid you would hurt someone?" She asked tentatively. Dinah peered at the girl questioningly, and then at Clark as well.

"Should I tell her?" She asked him.

"Why do you think I brought her here? She needs a female she can relate to besides I think you can help her more than I can." He asked her with a confidant grin.

"Tell me what?"

"I . . . have certain powers, Maddie. And when I was younger I didn't exactly know how to control them. I didn't really talk unless it was someone I knew really well because my voice can sometimes act as a blast kind of similar to an earthquake with the addition of a really high pitched frequency." She explained as plainly and as slowly as possible, "At one point it was so out of control that I thought even speaking would put people in danger."

"I can control glass with my mind." Maddie volunteered with a brand new set of social skills.

"Wow." Dinah said with wide eyes, "That's . . . impressive, How old are you?"

"Eleven."

"Even more impressive." Dinah said with a grin, "How much control do you have over them?"

"Enough to keep from hurting people on a regular basis, but not enough to get angry." She said with a sigh.

"You know when I was younger my mom called her friends to help train me . . . maybe we could do something like that for you?" Dinah thought to herself, "I mean I have a few favors that I can call in . . . and you have pretty strong control already . . ."

Maddie began to fidget and look nervous; Clark noticed this and spoke up, "Do we have to call in more people? Can't you just train her yourself?"

"Not completely," Dinah said as she finally saw Maddie's reaction, "But I think I can narrow it down to one or two."

Maddie brightened a little at the decrease in numbers.

"I promise you, Maddie, everyone that will know you can trust . . . believe me." Dinah told her with a smile and a nod.

* * *

"So, how do you plan on training her?" Clark asked curiously as they walked through the front door of the Kent house.

"Don't worry Clark I won't scar her for life. She needs to know how to live without fear of hurting someone, and how to live if someone tries to hurt her. I need to get a hold of a telepath or someone who's mind is a key part of their powers, and I need Ted Grant." She explained, "A telepath . . . I could always call Raven, she's a little dark, but she might work or . . . I could call in a favor in upstate New York, it wouldn't be easy, but I think this person just might be a better influence than Raven."

"Just don't turn her into a clone of you and Oliver okay?" He said protectively.

"Believe me, Clark, I just want her to know how to protect herself." Dinah told him with a small smile, "Did Chloe tell you about Level 33.1?"

"Yeah, she did." He said with a nod.

"Figures, as soon as someone comes anywhere near exposing the Luthor's they cover it all up. Just once I would like for someone to catch Lex with his hand in the cookie jar." She said bitterly.

"He did the same thing with Level 3." Clark said with a sigh.

"I know, I was there." Dinah told him darkly.

"Right, I forgot." He said apologetically.

"So . . . are you gonna help me or not?" Dinah asked demandingly.

He nodded, "Help you? You mean you're still going after The Luthors?"

"Are you kidding me? This is where the fun starts. I get to solve a mystery of Area 51 proportions." She said with a grin.

"Well, then you're definitely gonna need Chloe in on this. Weird, secret, and paranormal is her specialty." Clark told her with a chuckle.

* * *

_That's it for today, kiddies, enjoy! _

_angellwings._


	7. Superhero 101

A Caged Bird

by angellwings

Chapter 7: Superhero 101

Dinah grinned at the pre-teen before her. She was successfully piecing together a shattered pane of glass. Dinah beamed with pride as the tiny shards levitated from the ground and seamlessly re-formed the window pane. Barbara quickly caught the glass as Maddie broke her concentration.

"Amazing" Ollie whispered under his breath.

Dinah ran to the girl and hugged her tightly, "You have mastered that! You were wonderful!"

"Yeah, I'd say you're burning through the focus exercises at a surprising rate." Barbara said while squeezing Maddie's shoulder.

"My job is almost over." Dinah said with a sad smile.

Maddie's confident expression faltered, "I don't want my training to be over. I like hanging out with you guys . . ."

"Just because your training ends it does not mean that we have to stop hanging out." Barbara said with a soft chuckle.

"Especially if Bruce ever finds out." Ollie murmured to Dinah.

"That's exactly why we are not going to tell him." She stressed as it sneered out of her gritted teeth.

"Hey, Maddie, why don't we go get your stuff together?" Barbara asked suggestively as she pulled Maddie to the other end of Ollie's living room.

"I didn't say I was going to tell him. I was just warning you." He told her with a sigh, "Why exactly are you training her?"

"So she can stop being afraid of herself."

"By learning to control her powers properly, I get that." He said, "But what did todays lesson have to do with anything?"

"She needs to know that she can be _con_structive instead of _de_structive. That's what today was about." She explained.

"She's got amazing talent." Oliver said hungrily.

"No, Ollie," Dinah said forcefully, "This is not Superhero 101. I am not training her to be your own personal sidekick, got it?"

"She destined for it, you know, just like we were, just like Clark is." He told her simply.

"I don't want this for her. I want her to have some semblance of a normal life."

"Your talking like your her mother." Oliver said with a grin.

"I know, I've gotten too attached." She sighed, "She just reminds me so much of me when I was young."

He smiled fondly at the redhead. He admired her passion. He always had, but they just irked each other so much. And most of the time it was on purpose, "I'd be more worried about her getting too attached . . . not you. You can take it, but she's just a kid."

She nodded in understanding, and he was beginning to wonder why the two of them kept colliding. They certainly didn't intend to be constantly orbiting each other's lives. Since that night at the Daily Planet he had done his own research into 33.1, and the more he learned about it the more he wondered what Dinah had gone through while she was there.

Which much to his chagrin only made his hatred for Lex Luthor grow. He knew that Dinah and Chloe had been looking into 33.1 in their spare time.

Suddenly the boy scout burst out of the elevator, "How was training?"

Dinah's head snapped up to look at him as she chatted excitedly about Maddie's accomplishments. Clark grinned and followed along as best he could, nodding his head every now and then. Since Level 33.1 had been moved Clark, Chloe, and Dinah had been spending a lot of time together researching. And he had to admit he was intrigued by her. She had taken on the family mantle of Black Canary when her mother could no longer handle it, and through Maddie he had learned that she had been a very quiet, very insecure child. Which he found very hard to believe because now she wasn't one to leave her opinion unsaid. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Oliver watching them, and wondered what exactly was between Oliver and Dinah. They had a tense relationship, and spent most of their time arguing, but he could sense a mutual respect that the two of them shared for each other. And at times the looks they would throw in each other's directions would make him feel a tiny bit jealous. Him and Dinah didn't really have anything either, he realized. They'd been out a few times when it was just the two of them due to Chloe's conspiring, and Dinah had flirted with him. He wasn't stupid, he knew that much, and had done his best to flirt back, but flirting was never his specialty.

Nothing official had taken place, though.

Lois had officially labeled Black Canary as Green Arrow's girlfriend in her latest articles, and said it was because "side kick" didn't really describe the female vigilante properly. Neither Clark, Dinah, or Ollie really knew how to feel about that. Clark tried to ignore it as best as possible, Dinah avoided it if it was ever brought up in conversation, and Oliver acted as if that label didn't exist.

Maddie and Barbara made their way toward Clark and Dinah.

"Hey Clark!" Maddie exclaimed in excitement.

He smiled at the girl, "Hey, you ready for me to take you back to your grandmother's?"

"Yeah, I guess so." She said with a sigh.

Dinah chuckled, "I'll see you next Saturday, Mads."

"Definitely," The girl said as she gave Dinah a hug and ran toward the elevator.

Clark turned back before entering the elevator, "Chloe wants us to meet her at the Planet in about an hour."

"Sure thing, I'll be there." She told him with a smile.

He nodded and left with Maddie.

"You and the farmer official yet?" Barbara asked with a grin.

She rolled her eyes, "So glad you waited until he left the room to say that."

"Yeah well, you know me, I'm always so discreet." Barbara said with a grin.

Dinah sighed, "No, no official date, but a lot of official flirting. I wish he would just go ahead and ask me out, already."

"Yeah, well, Kent seems a little slow on the uptake." Oliver added from his position in the room.

"Oh yeah, and you're the king of relationships." Dinah said sarcastically.

"I'll guarantee you I'm better at them than he is." Oliver said with his arms crossed over his chest.

Barbara glanced at Oliver oddly. He sounded jealous, "Well, we'll just have to ask Lois about that won't we?"

Oliver eyes widened a little and regained their guarded glaze, "You do that."

Barbara covered up her grin with her hand, So Oliver was jealous. That made things interesting.

"Alright, guys, I gotta go. Chloe's waiting." She said as she grabbed her medium sized canvas tote, "Thanks for the use of the space, Ollie, and Babs I owe you as usual."

"Later, Dinah, and be careful." Barbara said with a stern look in her friend's direction.

"The Luthors aren't people you want to get caught messing around with." Oliver said in warning.

"Believe me, Ollie I know." She said as she headed for the elevator, "I'll see you guys later."

* * *

Dinah tossed her red hair over her shoulder as she entered the Planet's basement where Chloe's desk resided. 

"Hey Bonnie," Chloe said with a grin as she approached. Dinah glanced up to ask why she called her Bonnie and just as she did she spotted Jimmy looking at Chloe's computer screen from over her shoulder.

"Oh, Hey Chlo, Jimmy." She said with a smile and a nod.

"Where's Clark?" Chloe asked with a grin.

"Taking Maddie back to her grandmother's. He should be here soon." She answered as she set her tote down on top of Chloe's desk, "What are the two of you up to?"

"Just putting Jimmy's photo's on the layout for Lake's gossip column." Chloe said as she glanced up at Jimmy with pride.

"Gossip, an honorable and long-standing tradition." Jimmy said sarcastically, "Man, I wish I could handle some hard news."

"Hey, you're lucky they let you handle this." Chloe reminded him gently.

"So, who's the famous Linda Lake destroying tomorrow?" Dinah asked with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

"It's Top Secret, you'll have to wait to buy a copy tomorrow." Chloe said repramandingly.

"Well, that's pointless." She answered in complaint when a soft wind could be felt through the room.

"What did I miss?" Clark suddenly asked from beside Dinah.

Jimmy's head snapped up, "Where'd you come from?"

"What are you talking about?" Clark asked as he feigned ignorance.

"One minute it's the three of us, and the next . . ." Jimmy said in confusion, "What did you do use your covert mode or something?"

"What? No, I just . . . walk very quietly." Clark said with a smile and a shrug. Dinah and Chloe grinned and kept themselves from chuckling at Clark's expense.

Jimmy shook his head, "I'll see you guys later, I better get back to my non-existent desk."

Chloe smiled, and kissed Jimmy quickly on the lips before he left.

"So? Any idea where they moved it to?" Dinah asked once Jimmy was out of ear shot.

"None," Chloe said with a sigh, "But whatever happened to 33.1 wasn't done by Lex."

"You're thinking he let Lionel in on it?" Clark asked thoughtfully.

"Not until now." Chloe told him with an impressed glance.

"You sure you don't want to be a reporter, Farmer Brown?" Dinah asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't think so." Clark said adamantly.

* * *

The next morning Dinah got up earlier than she normally did on a Sunday. The noise of Clark finishing his morning chores seemed extra loud this morning. She groaned and sat in bed for about thirty more minutes trying to will herself to go back to sleep. But she was wide awake by the time the smell of scrambled eggs wafted up the stairs. She yawned, threw her bath robe over her yellow and white flannel PJ pants and her white tank top then padded her way to the kitchen. 

She covered her mouth as she yawned a second time and opened the refrigerator door to get a glass of orange juice when she spotted some one sitting at the kitchen counter.

"Umm, hi?" The boy said cautiously.

"Another Kent Farm stray, huh?" She asked him with a small smile.

"I'm sorry?" He said in confusion.

She chuckled, "Nothing, My names Di-I mean Bonnie. You are?"

"Javier."

"Nice to meet you Javier, now where did Kent pick you up? You weren't by any chance stealing some of their corn were you?" She asked as she set the pitcher down and went back to grab herself a glass.

"No, I was hiding in the barn. I didn't wake you did I? Clark didn't say anything about anyone else being here." He said apologetically.

She smiled, "Nah, it was the smell of food that got me up. So, hiding in the barn, huh? Let me guess, he found you, fixed you food, and told you he would help you with whatever problem you're running away from, right?"

"Yeah, how did you know?" He asked her skeptically.

"That's what they did with me." She said with a smile, "Except I was starving and tried to steal some of their corn. What are you running from?"

"The farm down the road." He said plainly.

"McNally's?" She asked to clarify.

"Yeah, he wouldn't let anyone leave, and I had to find my mom." He explained.

"You couldn't just quit?" She asked as she grabbed some bread and stuck it in the toaster.

"He doesn't pay us."

"What? You mean like slaves?" She asked with concern.

He nodded sullenly.

She shook her head and sighed sadly, "I don't understand why any one would put people through that."

She slipped an arm around his shoulders and gave him a comforting squeeze.

"Oh, and let me guess Clark's gone to check out Mr. McNally right?" She asked with a hint of a smile.

"Yeah," He answered with another nod. Dinah took her arm away and grinned.

"I swear if that boy doesn't become a reporter I don't know what he'll do with himself." She said with a chuckle as she heard a car door slam in the distance. Her head snapped up and looked toward the front door.

"That can't be Clark, he just left." Javier told her with a furrowed brow.

"Hello? Is anyone here?"

Dinah's eyes went wide, "It's Clark's mom. You might need to hid in the barn until Clark can talk to her."

She lead him to the back door, and told him to run to the barn and find a good hiding spot. He quickly did as he was told, and she jogged back to the kitchen and sat on his stool and in front of his plate. She hadn't had time to fix herself any eggs yet so she could pretend that Javier's plate was her own.

"In here Mrs. Kent!" Dinah called.

"Morning Dinah," She said cheerfully.

"Morning, Mrs. K, you're home early." She said with a smile.

"Yes, there are some things I need to attend to here and in Metropolis so I came back a day early." She said as she observed the plate and the toaster dinged, "Did you just finish breakfast?"

"Yeah, Scrambled eggs, orange juice, and toast. Mmmmmm." She said over dramatically.

"Certainly does sound good," Mrs. Kent said as she gave Dinah a strange look.

Dinah stood and picked up the dishes and placed them in the sink. She grabbed a piece of toast, and turned back to Mrs. Kent.

"I'm, umm, gonna go take a shower now." She said awkwardly as she ran up the steps and took a bite of her toast.

"As long as you come back down and clean up the dishes when you're done." Mrs. Kent called after her as she picked up the phone.

"Not a problem, Mrs. K!" She yelled in response as she reached the bathroom.

* * *

As she reached the bottom of the stairs after showering and getting dressed she heard Clark and Martha arguing. 

"I'm an Illegal immigrant, mom. You've been harboring me for over seventeen years." He told her passionately. Dinah really didn't think that after that statement their could be any more arguing with Clark, but Mrs. Kent tried. Clark won, as that seems to happen most of the time. She heard Clark leave and then continued her trek down the stairs.

"Dinah, did you know?" She heard Mrs. Kent ask. She looked up to see her looking her way.

She winced, "About Javier?"

"And you didn't tell me?" She asked with a stern look on her face.

"I thought I would give Clark a chance to talk to you first." She told her honestly.

Martha Kent sighed, "I guess theres no refusing Clark when he's on a mission is there?"

"Most definitely not." Dinah said with a grin and laugh.

* * *

She didn't get time to see Clark over the next two days. Or Javier for that matter. She spent most of her time working at the Talon and going to class. She went to Metropolis on her one free night to Stake Out Luthor Corp. Executives (Mostly Lionel) with Ollie, and then met Chloe to brief her on what they uncovered. The next time she got to see him was after all the Javier drama. She found him in the barn as Lana was leaving. He turned around as she entered the barn. 

"I don't get it." He said with a sigh.

"Don't get what, Clark?"

"What's she's doing with Lex."

"You're telling me that you're still hung up on her? What? Do you want her to be with you instead? I was sort of under the impression you were getting over her." Dinah stated with a dangerously jealous edge to her voice.

"It's not that easy, Dinah. Lana and I have this history." He said as he turned to face her.

She rolled her eyes, "Yeah, I know. You were obsessed with her in high school and then you finally got her after graduation. You've saved her life numerous times . . . blah, blah, blah. I get it, but come on, Clark. Sooner or later you're going to have to face the fact that you're not destined to be with her."

"And what? I'm destined to be with you instead?" He asked sarcastically.

She glared at him, "Don't make it sound so repulsive. No, I'm not saying that. I'm just saying that whoever it is, it's not Lana."

"How do you know?"

"Because if that were so, the two of you would have worked it out by now." She stated with frustration. _Just when I thought I was getting somewhere with him, _She thought to herself, "You know what, I think I'm just gonna leave you alone with your extremely depressing thoughts. I leave you alone to brood."

_Geez, the way he's acting you would think he was Bruce._ She thought as she made her way back to the house.

* * *

_Theres the next chapter. Sorry it took forever, but I had to find these episodes online so I could write this story accurately. Hope you like it!_

_Takes place during "Subterranean" btw_

_angellwings_


	8. Relapse

A Caged Bird

Chapter Seven: Relapse

by angellwings

Dinah swiftly stepped through her bedroom window. She quickly peeled off her costume, changed into a a cotton, spaghetti strap, nightgown, and grabbed her terry-cloth bath robe. She ran down the steps and slipped on her flip-flops by the door then ran to the barn to meet Clark. She was late. Her and Oliver's take down was a little more complicated than they thought. The thugs had a little more back up than they thought, but it was all good. Team work had it's advantages in situations like that. Speaking of Team work, it was something she Ollie had been doing a lot of lately, and she had no idea why. He would show up to help her stake out Lex or Lionel, and then she would show up to help him pull a Robin Hood. She tied the waist of her robe tighter as she started up to the loft.

"Clark? Are you up here?" She called.

"Yeah, over here." He said as he approached the railing, "You're late, is everything okay?"

"Totally fine, things were just a little more complicated than we thought." She said with a smile.

He spotted her bruised cheek and patched up busted lip, "Looks like it was a lot more complicated."

"Clark, I can take care of myself." She told him with a sigh.

"Hence why you're living in my house." He told her sternly.

"Is there a reason why you wanted me to meet you here? Or are you just going to lecture me all night?" She asked as she cocked her hip to the side and placed a hand on the opposite side to balance her posture.

He gave her a small grin, "I just wanted to apologize for the way I treated you the other night. I was out of line."

"It took you almost a whole week to get that out?" She asked as she suppressed a chuckle.

"I had a lot of thinking to do." He told her with a nervous gulp.

"About what?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

He took a deep breath and stepped to stand in front of her. He looked down at her confused face, and his eyes automatically traveled to her lips.

"About this." He said as he reached down and placed his right hand on the base of her scalp and the back of her neck and pulled her to him. Her eyes widened in shock as his lips covered hers, but she quickly relaxed and slid her hands up his chest and around his neck. He wrapped his left arm around her waist as he moved his right hand to the small of her back. She pulled him to her and deepened the kiss. She was surprised by how thoroughly the boy could kiss. He was in charge, and she didn't mind at all. His bottom lip led the kisses, and she reveled in the tingles and the heat he caused. She could feel that it was innocent in nature, and there was no pressure or immediate need for anything more, and that knowledge caused her to relax even more. She slipped her fingers into his hair, and twisted a few strands around her fingers. When they finally pulled apart her hands moved from his hair to his chest, and his hands rested on her waist.

She smiled at the slight blush that appeared on his face, "I'd say you did some real good thinking this past week."

He flashed her that bright farm boy smile, and then she felt her own cheeks flush. He cleared his throat and continued, "You were right, about Lana. We would have worked it out. It would have happened by now."

"I'm sorry, if what I said sounded rude or harsh." She told him as she licked her swollen lips. Her tongue ran across the cut on the side of her lip, and she hissed in pain quietly. It was sore now, what with the weight of Clark's lips on hers and all, "It was just so frustrated to see you so upset about her and Lex when I thought you had been sending me some pretty clear signals, and I . . . well . . . I was jealous."

"I was sending you signals, it's just that I get so confused when it comes to Lana. The lines are still a little blurry with me and her, and seeing her with someone I can't stand just drives me crazy. If it were anyone else . . ."

"You were jealous because Lex has what you gave up. I get it, Clark. Don't flower it up for me. It just makes it worse in the long run." She told him as she placed a hand on his arm, "Maybe we should wait on whatever it is that's between us. Starting something when you still have feeling for Lana is going to doom whatever was behind that kiss."

"I'm sick of waiting for me to get over Lana, I let her go. She's obviously over me, so why wait any longer?" Clark asked with anger directed at himself. He was letting Lana get in the way of his life. He had to stop doing that. If he didn't move on he would end up missing something wonderful.

She glanced at him skeptically, "So if she woke up tomorrow morning and realized she was still in love with you what would you do?"

"I would tell her it wouldn't work out." He said simply. She still sensed a certain amount of hesitancy in his voice, but chose to ignore it.

"Good enough for me." She said as she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down for another heated kiss. He smiled against her lips and then quickly joined in.

* * *

She and Clark made out for several more minutes before heading back to the house and to their separate rooms. She smiled as she shoved the covers back on her bed. This was going to be a good day. Clark had made a move. He hadn't asked her out on a date, but he had kissed her. Which in her opinion was much better, and if it coincided with what she already knew of Clark then it pretty much guaranteed her a date sooner or later.

She smiled as she walked into the coffee shop that morning. Nothing could ruin this day. It was perfect. She stepped behind the bar and tied her apron. She nodded at Chloe as she looked up from her paper. Chloe stood up and walked over with the paper in her hand.

"Have you talked to Clark today?" Chloe asked curiously.

"No, I haven't seen him since last night, why?" She asked as she began to wipe down the counter.

"I was just wondering if you had run into him on his was to the Luthor Mansion." She said as she laid the paper out in front of her, "Or if you'd seen the Planet this morning."

"Why? What's in the Planet?" Dinah asked as she glanced down at the paper before her.

"Lake's latest victim turns out to be the eternal triangle of Lex, Lana, and Clark." Chloe said as she stabbed the article's graphic that featured the three of them, "I showed this to Clark earlier and it was like he couldn't peel out fast enough."

"He's gone to talk to Lana? Are you sure?" She asked with an edge of fear to her voice.

"Positive, he was very determined." Chloe said as she pulled up the paper.

"Dammit." She cursed with a sigh, "I knew it. I knew it was too good to be true, but I refused to really believe it."

Chloe's eyebrows merged together in confusion, "What are you talking about?"

"Just me and my naïve stupidity." She said as she covered her face with her hands and groaned.

Chloe's eyes went wide, "Wait, did you and Clark . . .?"

"Make out? Yes, with a bit of intensity. Does it matter now? Not one tiny bit." She said as she threw the rag down and shook her head, "I need to vent, and, no offense Chloe, but I don't want to add any more stress to your day."

She grabbed her purse from behind the counter and told the assistant manager to take over for her while she was out. She left an even more confused Chloe in the dust. She slipped back into the Kent truck and made her way toward Metropolis.

* * *

The elevator doors flew open and Dinah stormed into the room, and was greeted by a half dressed Oliver Queen. He eyed her strangely.

"Dinah? What are you doing here?"

She stared at him in shock for a moment before answering, "I need to vent, and you're the only person available for me to vent to."

"Vent? About Kent?" He asked her with a knowing grin as he threw his copy of the Planet down in his coffee table while making his way to her.

"You read Linda Lake's column, I see?" She asked him sarcastically.

"Just Today, I had a peeked interest."

"This sucks! You know that? I mean the guy finally makes a move and then Lake has to go and ruin it. Sends Farmer Brown running back to Lana with waiting arms! I'm SO STUPID!" She yelled frustratedly as she threw her purse in a chair. She looked back up at him, "Is there a reason you're not wearing a shirt? Or is this your way of getting my attention?"

He chuckled, "Lois just left, and I didn't realize I affected you so."

"You're such a pompous ass." She said with a glare.

He held up his hands in surrender, "Hey, I'm not Kent, okay? Don't use up all your insults on me."

"Ugh! Why do I have to be such a moronic, hopeless, idiot? I am so damn bad at relationships. I always fall for guys who are unavailable, on the rebound, or manipulative jerks who get you locked up and experimented on. I should just quit dating. Period. No more romance for Dinah." She said as she fell back onto a near by chair.

Ollie had to make sure he heard that one sentence right, "What did you say?"

"No more romance for Dinah." She said again as she suddenly realized her slip.

"No, no before that. That sentence about the manipulative jerk." He said curiously.

"You know what, I better go. I left the assistant manager in charge, I need to get back." She said as she grabbed her purse and ran for the elevator, "Later, Ollie!"

Before he could call her back she was gone and out the door. Leaving him with several questions that needed answering.

* * *

As she came back from her shift at the Talon later that night she saw Lana's car driving away from the barn. _Well, looks like they had that talk_, She thought bitterly. She parked the truck and stepped out toward the house.

"Dinah?" She heard Clark call after her.

She sighed, and turned to face him, "How's Lana? Just as wonderful as you remember her I suppose, right?"

"You saw Lake's column?"

"Of course, and not only that but Chloe gave me the most interesting bit of news about you this morning. Seems you couldn't wait to talk things over with Lana despite all those false promises you made last night." She said with her arms crossed over her chest.

"I'm sorry, Dinah. I really am. But nothing ha-"

"Look, Clark, today made me realize something. It made me realize that you are not over Lana, and you won't be for a long time. I can't date you or kiss you if that's the case. Not to sound selfish or rude, but I know I deserve better than that. I've had years of bad relationships and been in situations like this before only this time I'm going to do the smart thing. You and I won't work. Not right now anyway. I don't think anything happening between us is a good idea." She said in a rush as her anger began to dissipate. When she was done she took a deep breath, "There I said it. I actually said it."

She saw the shocked look on Clark's face and didn't bother to wait for a response. She merely turned on her heels and headed back toward the house. She knew she was doing the right and smart thing for both of them, but it still stung that they didn't even get a real chance. There was no hope of that with Lana around. He was still too caught up in her for any relationship to really work.

* * *

_ta da!! an update!! woo hoo! I'm done with classes and out of school so I will hopefully have more time to write! This chapter corresponds with "Hydro". Enjoy!_

_angellwings_


	9. A New Purpose Pt 1

A Caged Bird

Chapter Eight: A New Purpose, Part One

by: angellwings

"What's going on, Arrow? We didn't have patrol scheduled for tonight, so why are we meeting?" She asked him with slight irritation. "I blew off Mrs. K's home cooked dinner for this so it better be good."

"I need you to do me a favor." He said simply.

"What kind of a favor?" Canary asked suspiciously.

"Act as a look out for a, um, colleague of mine." Came his vague reply.

"A colleague? What kind of colleague?"

"Our kind of colleague. He'll be inside the Luthor Mansion at One O'clock. I need you to signal him in case there are any unwanted visitors." He said quickly.

"Breaking into the Mansion? The only person in the world that I know is capable of that is Clark Kent, and if he's the guy you're talking about you can forget it." She growled.

"Not the only person in the world, Bird Lady." A voice said from behind Oliver. Oliver sighed in frustration and asked the person to step forward.

"I told you to wait until I had explained the situation." He said as he glared at the young man.

"What's the big deal? It's not like she's not used to the paranormal. I mean she almost dated Clark." He scoffed.

She sighed, "Did not need the reminder, thank you . . . and who the hell are you?"

"Bart Allen at your service." He said as he swiftly kissed her hand.

She grinned sarcastically at him and pulled her hand away, "I believe I was called here to help YOU, not the other way around. Seriously Arrow, I am not a baby sitter."

"I'm not asking you to be. He'll take care of himself, just warn him when some one approaches." He said with slight aggravation. Dinah had been in a weird mood lately, and he was getting sick of it.

She sighed as if it were a major hassle, "Fine, but if you get him captured; you're cleaning up your own mess."

"I believe you're as interested in the information as I am." Arrow hinted suggestively.

She glared at him slightly, "What does that mean? Please tell me that does not mean you've been investigating 33.1 with out me, because if I found out that all those 'patrols' you asked me to help out with were ways to gain your own information I would be mighty pissed, Queen. That's my investigation and you know it. Chloe and I can handle it."

He grinned maliciously at her, "What happened to Clark? Isn't he in on it too?"

She growled in warning, "No, no he's not, and I plan on keeping it that way, got it?"

"Got it." He said with a smirk.

She sighed in frustration and resignation, "So, all you need me to do is be a look out?"

"Yes, and then report back when you're on the way to the rendezvous point." Oliver said in a commanding tone.

"Okay, I'll do it," She said through gritted teeth, "But from now on, I better be involved in this investigation."

Arrow nodded, "Deal. Now, you two crazy kids play nice."

* * *

Bart was in and out at the speed of light with zero interference, and the three of them met in Metropolis. She followed Arrow inside a deserted warehouse with her bike, and was greeted by a monster, sleek, black jet. They were three lockers off to the side with different symbols and names on the doors. There was a small kitchen, and a huge screen with several blue prints on display. To the left was a large, tall, water tank that held what looked to be a lake full of water. There was an attractive blond guy stepping out of the tank with his shirt off. She squinted at him thoughtfully. She knew him from some where but . . .

"Oh my God," She said as she recognized him, "A.C.?"

He glanced down and squinted at her as well and then let out a loud laugh, "Dinah? Did Queen pull you into this too?"

She ran to meet him as he came down the ladder. He spun her around quickly and dipped her dramatically.

She rolled her eyes and shoved him away, "Show off."

He winked, "Of course."

"You two know each other?" Oliver asked in a bored tone.

"Helped him escape the wrath of the Penguin on one of Bruce's busier nights." She said with a grin.

"Uh huh, and then I turned around and saved you from that shark of his, remember?" He asked.

"Yes, I remember, no need to rub it in." She said as she stuck her tongue out at him.

"So, what have you been up to over the past couple of years?" He asked.

"Oh, you know, the usual. Kidnapped, experimented on, escaped, and currently hiding out in Podunk, USA. Yourself?" She said casually.

"A little bit of the same, and then I started working for Ollie." A.C. Told her with an understanding nod.

She snapped her head in Oliver's direction, "What'd you do? Form your own Super SWAT Team? You didn't try and recruit Maddie for this did you?"

"A Kid? Are you insane?" He asked her in shock.

"Don't tell me you consider the hormonal speedster over there to be an adult?" She asked him sarcastically.

"I'm not a kid, I'll be 18 in six months." Bart protested with a glare.

"My point exactly." Dinah said as she rolled her eyes.

"Look, Dinah, your my fourth, last, and only female recruitment are you in or out?" Oliver asked plainly with a sigh.

"It's not like I can ethically refuse, you know?" She asked him in a bored tone.

He grinned victoriously, "I know."

She growled lightly, "Fine, I'm in."

* * *

After meeting Victor, the other member of Ollie's little group, she returned to Smallville. It took her longer than Bart, of course. Nearly two hours, but that was pretty good time considering the drive was supposed to be three hours. She pulled her motorcycle into the cellar, and made her way back to her room using the only grapple that Bruce lent her. She dropped back in through her window stealthily to find Bart leaning against her door frame.

"Hola, senorita." He said with half a smirk.

"What the hell are you doing here?" She asked with a scoff as she slid off her hood.

"I promised Mrs. K I would stay here tonight. Didn't want me staying all alone on the streets or something like that."

"Sounds like Martha Kent." Dinah said with an affectionate smile.

"Just thought I would play Prince Charming and make sure you arrived safely." He said with a wink.

"The last thing I want, Kid, is a Prince Charming." She said with a bitter laugh.

"You know what I find weird about wants?" He asked from the door.

She shrugged carelessly, "What?"

"The last thing people want is usually the first thing they need." He said with a flirtatious smirk.

She rolled her eyes to ignore the strange irony in his words, "Good night, Bart."

"Good night, Di." He said as he suddenly vanished from the door way. She closed the door and glanced suspiciously up and down the hallway to make sure he really had gone to bed. She sincerely hoped Oliver knew what he was doing.

* * *

She woke up that morning to be greeted by the sight of Bart chowing down in the kitchen.

"Oh, sick." She mumbled as Mrs. Kent came into view beside him, "Who's the pig?"

Her ignorance was feigned, but it wasn't exactly like she could let Mrs. Kent know she knew him.

"Di-Bonnie, don't be rude." Mrs. Kent scolded.

"Sorry, Mrs. K. You eat a lot of food for a guy your size . . . I'm Bonnie, by the way." She said as she grimaced at him while he shoveled down food.

"Bahd" He said with a mouthful of food. She gagged and looked to Mrs. Kent pleadingly.

"Bart, don't talk with your mouthful." She told him with slight amusement.

He gulped down the food in his mouth, "Sorry, Mrs. K."

"Bart is a friend of Clark's that visits us whenever he's in town." Martha told Dinah warmly.

"Oh, yeah, well . . . Welcome back to the Kent Farm." She said with a sigh as she sat down beside him.

"Speaking of the Farm, Bonnie, you have some chores today." Martha said with a small grin.

"Are you serious? It's not enough that I have to work today? I have to do chores too?" She complained as she sagged her shoulders.

"You've been here long enough, it's time you helped out." She told her kindly.

"Right, So chores now, breakfast later?" She asked skeptically.

Martha merely nodded, "Start with straightening up your room."

"Yes, Ma'am." She answered with a smile as she headed upstairs.

* * *

It took forever to straighten up her mess of a room, and when she finally finished she just happened to hear the end of an argument as she came down the steps. She heard Bart's voice and Clark's raised tone.

"Then tell me why you're stealing form Luthor Corp."

"I just-I can't."

"I'll find out for myself then."

"Look I'm sorry I can't tell you all of my secrets Clark. Okay, I thought a guy like you would understand that." Bart's disappointed and conflicted tone could be heard floating up the stairs.

She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and met Clark's hurt gaze head on.

"Yeah, Clark, you'd think a guy like you **would** understand that." She said with a steely glare, "Well, Farmer Brown, I'm off to work. The Talon waits."

She froze as she approached the truck and her ComLink buzzed. She shivered and the vibration in her ear, "God, that is so weird."

She quickly recovered from the new feeling and answered the call. "What's up?"

"Bart's going in for more info in a few minutes. Keep tabs with him while he works will you?" Oliver's voice asked from the other end.

"Sure thing, patch me through." She answered automatically.

"Hey, Di. You there?" She heard Bart ask in his signature cocky tone.

"Yeah, I'm here, Kid." She answered quickly.

"Good, I'll be in Mexico shortly so keep in touch." He told her firmly.

"Sure thing."

There was silence for a few seconds, before she heard Bart's voice again, "Approaching Luthor Corp. facility." which was followed quickly by, "Once I get to the computer I'm shutting off the ComLink. Ollie said they might be on to our frequency."

"Alright, be sure to contact me as soon as you're out."

"Aw, worried about me, are you?" He asked with an audible grin.

"Shut it, Kid, and just be careful, okay?" She said with a sigh.

"Please, no one can catch me." He said proudly, "Cutting off connection."

She got in the truck, and began to drive off toward Main Street. She expected to hear from Bart a few minutes later, and was very worried when eleven o'clock came and Bart still hadn't contacted her. So, she slipped out the back, and called Oliver discretely.

"Have you heard from him?" Was the first thing she said after Oliver answered.

"Not since he was approaching the facility, you?"

"Just before he entered he shut off the link, and since then I've heard nothing." She said worriedly.

"Somethings wrong, I can feel it." He said with a sigh, "Victor and A.C. Are meeting me at my apartment to plan a rescue. I suggest you join us."

She nodded before remembering Oliver couldn't see her, "I'm on my way, right now."

* * *

_Alright, so that's the first update I've posted in A LONG TIME. I hope you all like it. More coming as soon as I can figure out how to convincingly fit Dinah in the rest of the episode._

_Enjoy!_

_angellwings_


	10. A New Purpose Pt 2

A Caged Bird

Chapter Nine: A New Purpose, Pt. 2

by angellwings

She sighed frustratedly as they all stared at the screen. Oliver had gone back to inspect where Bart had been taken. There was nothing there. It was a trap. Oliver said Luthor had probably moved Bart by now, and he pulled up the list of possible locations. Now she was angry for losing track of Bart and pissed that Oliver had known this much about 33.1 and had left her in the dark. Her jaw was clenched and her arms were crossed defensively over her chest. This was no time to be mad at Queen. She needed to focus on finding Bart.

AC grinned at her and leaned down to whisper in her ear, "You look a little upset. Let me guess . . . Oliver didn't tell you he'd known this much about 33.1."

"Of course he didn't. I mean why would he tell me? I was merely captured and experimented on in the early stages of it. Theres absolutely no reason that I should have been told." She said loudly with heavy sarcasm.

Victor's eyes widened at her tone and he winced instinctively. He turned to Oliver and patted him on the shoulder, "Sounds like she's not too fond of you at the moment, man."

"She'll get over it." Oliver said with a roll of his eyes. Dinah glared at him and smacked him across the back of the head.

"Insensitive, rich, prick." She hissed at she turned away from the screen and walked over to look at the stack of papers on the coffee table, "Do we have any idea which facility he could have taken Bart to?"

Victor grinned at the sudden change of topic, "No, but I'm sure we can eliminate over half of this list if we just-"

There was a buzz at the door, and Oliver glanced at it quizzically, "I'm gonna go see who that is. You three better hide just in case."

AC nodded and dragged Dinah with him into the room where Oliver kept all of his Green Arrow gear. She glared at Oliver one last time before leaving with AC. Victor's amused face stayed constant as he followed them into the room.

The three of them waited in the back room silently, and listened to the conversation outside.

"That sounds like Clark." AC mouthed to the other two. Dinah held back a curse. It was Clark. This is exactly what she needed. Damn. They listened as Clark accused and Oliver defended, and once he mentioned the team they all stood and made their way to the door. There was no point in hiding now. The clock face opened and they all stepped through. Clark had a look of genuine shock on his face.

"Not everybody flies solo, Kent." Victor said in response to his expression.

After giving Clark a moment to take it all in. Oliver resumed giving orders.

"AC check the Luthorcorp manifest, Dinah check the visitor's logs for the last couple days." He said as they made their way to the files.

"How long have you guys been working together?" Clark asked the room with a lingering suspicious glance at Dinah.

"I joined up about six months ago. Ollie and Bart had already been doing their thing." Victor said casually.

"What about your girlfriend, Catherine?" Clark asked again. Dinah gave AC a curious glance. She didn't even know Victor had a girlfriend. AC Shook his head and looked back at Clark.

"Dude, don't even go there."

"She gave it her best shot, but with all this hardware in me . . ." Victor said as he let his voice trail off.

"I'm sorry, Victor." Was all Clark responded with.

"When Ollie found me I was living on the streets. He gave me a warm meal, a roof over my head, and a reason to go on living." Victor said seriously.

Dinah looked at Victor with a new found fondness, and Ollie with renewed respect. He was helping them as much as they would help him. She thought about Victor's last sentence. " . . . a reason to go on living." Had she found that? She thought she had. She made a life for herself in Smallville. She had friends, and family. But . . . she was hiding. And as much as she wanted to she couldn't be Bonnie Cardinal forever. Besides if she spent her entire life hiding out then her talents would be wasted, and that was one thing her mother taught her. "If you can do something to make a difference, Dinah, than do it because you're one of the few who actually can."

Maybe this was her reason. Saving people from going through what she went through.

She saw Oliver make his way to AC, "Did he just say something nice about me?"

"Maybe he's starting to rust." AC said with a grin and a wink in Dinah's direction. She chuckled and shook her head.

"Focus, Fish Boy." She told him with a playful grin. He stuck his tongue out at her in return. Oliver couldn't help but secretly wonder why she was so friendly and pleasant with AC, and why the two of them couldn't act that way. They were always fighting, and he wondered if they could ever really be friends.

"AC how did you fall into all this?" Clark asked as he ignored Dinah's comment.

"I got into a little trouble sinking a whaler off the coast of Japan." He said in a nonchalant tone as got up and headed across the room. Dinah laughed inwardly. She doubted it was a minor as AC said it was. He tended to go big or go home.

"A little trouble? That's what you're gonna go with?" Victor asked with an unbelieving look on his face, "Ollie had to save your scaly butt from getting filleted."

Dinah laughed loudly at that and shook her head, "Figures."

"I would have gotten out of it." He said with the tone of some one who was worried about their reputation.

"Oh, really? Before or after they packed you into a thousand little tin cans?" Oliver asked with a grin.

Dinah was laughing too hard to even speak at this point, and then Victor seeing how amused Dinah was had to add another comment.

"Well, at least, he would have been dolphin safe."

Dinah clamped a hand over her mouth as AC turned to glare at her for laughing.

"Fish jokes, that's all I ever get are fish jokes." He said with aggravation.

Clark grinned and then turned his gaze to Dinah. She quickly gulped back what ever wise crack that had been forming in her throat.

"And what about you?" Clark asked with a touch of anger behind his voice.

"Don't worry, Farmer Brown, I haven't been lieing to you for months on end. I joined up about a day and a half ago." She said with all the attitude she could muster, "There, you're precious little ego is unscathed."

Victor and AC glanced curiously between the two, and tried to peg the reason for the sudden tension. AC cleared his throat and thought it best to change the topic.

"So, how's Lois doing, man. Is she alright?" He asked.

"I think you'd have to ask your boss." Clark said with a smirk in Oliver's direction.

"Now's not the time," Oliver said as he avoided the question artlessly, "We need to focus on locating Bart."

Dinah's ears perked up at the tone in Oliver and Clark's voices, "Wait, AC, does that mean you dated Lois?"

He nodded and looked genuinely confused, "Why?"

Dinah let out an amused scoff and turned to face Victor, "What is it with vigilante's and the women of Smallville?"

Victor grinned and winked at her, "Maybe it's all those meteor rocks."

"From what Chloe's told me I wouldn't be surprised." Dinah stated factually.

"How exactly did you get Bart involved in this?" Clark asked as he steered the conversation back down more intense paths, "He's never been much of a team player."

"Looks like you two have something in common, huh?" Oliver asked as he began to flip through more files. By this point Dinah knew the routine. Oliver would explain some sad story and some how come off as the good Samaritan, and Clark would make a biting sarcastic remark. But what she didn't expect was what Oliver said next.

"I underestimated Lex; it won't happen again."

Maybe it was more the tone that surprised her than the actual words. He stated it so plainly and honestly. He was unbelievably confident, and she hated to admitted but it was kind of sexy. After recovering from the display of sexy male determination she thought about the actual words.

He admitted to making a mistake. Oliver Queen, the most infuriating man she knew, admitted to making a mistake. She leaned toward AC and whispered, "Did he just admit he got something wrong?"

"I'm not sure, but I think so." He said with a shocked tone as well.

"I've compiled a list of all Luthorcorp holdings with in a hundred mile radius," Oliver said as a grid appeared on the screen that mapped out all Luthorcorp properties, "Bart could be held in any one of those facilities."

"That's a lot of real estate to cover." Victor said observantly and thoughtfully. All of sudden as she stared at this grid one face came to mind. Chloe. She opened her mouth to speak, but Clark beat her to it.

"I think I know someone who can help us narrow it down." He said as his eyes never left the grid, and in a flash he was gone again.

"People come and go so quickly here." AC said sarcastically in a high feminine voice. The line was taken from "The Wizard of Oz". Even with her limited movie knowledge she knew that much.

Dinah rolled her eyes at him, "So, I guess we just wait for him to come back?"

"I suppose." Oliver said with a frustrated sigh. Dinah sat down and tapped her fingers against the surface of a nearby glass table. Oliver placed his hand on top of hers to stop the drumming and gave her a pointed look.

"Alright, I'll stop. I just hate waiting." She said as she jerked her hand out from under his.

AC cleared his throat and then glanced at her before speaking, "By the way, what was that between you and Clark earlier?"

"What you mean the awkward palpable tension?" She asked lightly as if it was an everyday occurrence. Which it was.

"Clark's paranoid that every one he knows is deceiving him, despite that fact that he does plenty of that on his own, He has the impossible bad habit of not being able to let go of the past, and . . ." She said as she debated whether she should tell them or not.

"They almost dated." Oliver finished for her with an amused look.

"I am capable of finishing my own sentences, you know." She snapped.

"Once again, do not take your Clark frustrations out on me." He said as he held his hands up in surrender.

"Sorry." She mumbled with an apologetic sigh.

"Wait, I thought he was dating . . . Lana, right? Did they break up?" Victor asked curiously.

"Yes they did. As a matter of fact she's involved with Lex Luthor now, but Clark just can't let go. So, I pretty much told him a relationship wasn't going to fly if he was still caught up in Lana Land." Dinah said bitterly. She really had to get over this. But it was hard when she lived in the same house as him, and hung out with the same people every day, "This is ridiculous. I should be over it by now right? I mean it's not like I actually dated the guy. Logically, it should be relatively simple to just forget it. I mean we never even went on an official date . . . I don't even know if we went on an unofficial date."

Dinah sighed in frustration and then remembered the other people in the room that had witnessed her outburst. She glanced at them sheepishly before apologizing, "Sorry, my brain's on overload at the moment."

AC grinned and hugged the woman to him comfortingly, Ollie was still trying to process everything she said, while Victor just sat silently and awkwardly. When suddenly there was an alert that the elevator was moving. Oliver hit the camera button and expected to see Clark, but instead saw Chloe Sullivan who he had only met in passing one or two times.

"What's Chloe doing here?" Dinah asked as she saw the feed.

"No clue, but I think you guys should-"

"Hide, yeah we got it." Victor said with a nod as he headed for the Green Arrow room. AC and Dinah followed. Oliver couldn't help but notice that, as they stood and headed for the room, she had her arm linked through his. And for some unknown reason it bothered him.

* * *

_ta da! Another update! Enjoy!_

_angellwings_


	11. A New Purpose, Pt 3

A Caged Bird

Chapter Ten: A New Purpose, Pt. 3

by angellwings

Dinah grinned as she listened to Oliver and Chloe talk. Chloe knew about Oliver. Of course, Chloe knew about Oliver. Chloe knew everything. Or at least it seemed that way.

"I did have to figure out about your green leather fetish on my lonesome. Don't worry I didn't say anything to Lois, although you might want to consider..."

"Yeah, let's just stick to the main plot there, sidekick..."

Dinah came so close to laughing out loud after that A.C. Almost had to clamp his hand over her mouth. She glared at him before he succeeded and he backed away, of course. The next thing she heard was Chloe asking a question.

"Where are Victor and AC?"

The three of them walked forward from their hiding spot.

"Guess we're not that good at the whole 'secret' part of this yet." Victor stated sarcastically.

"Hey, speak for yourselves, she didn't say my name." Dinah told them with a smug grin.

"Okay, so I didn't know you were here, but who came up with your alias, huh?" Chloe asked her with a playful glare.

"Did you even realize how appropriate the alias you gave me was?" Dinah asked her. It was something she'd always been curious about. It was a strange coincidence that her alias would translate, "Pretty Bird".

"Nope, you're just lucky that Mr. Kent had a sister with the married name Cardinal." Chloe told her with a grin.

"Wait, what's your alias?" AC asked curiously with a slight grin. Dinah looked at him in horror.

"Um, nothing, it's nothing just a boring fake name, you know, average, everyday, dull name." She didn't want them to know because they would never let her live it down. Bruce, Barbara, and Oliver picked on her enough about it already.

"It's Bonnie Cardinal." Oliver said with a smirk, "Loosely translated it means Pretty Bird."

She glared at him, "Why? I mean, was that really necessary?"

AC let out a loud laugh, "Bonnie Cardinal?"

"From now on you'll get nothing but bird jokes." Victor told her with a quiet chuckle.

"Joy." Dinah dead panned.

"Any way, I think Bart's being held at a place called the Ridge Facility." Chloe said as she brought them back on topic.

"That's down by the docks." AC stated thoughtfully.

"And it's on our list of possible 33.1 targets." Oliver said as he pulled up the blue prints on screen, "Alright, you know the drill, let's gear up and get out."

Except one thing, Dinah didn't know the drill, but she knew the first step. Change into Black Canary's costume. So she moved to follow the guys.

"Oh no." She heard Chloe say from behind her. Dinah immediately froze and turned to face her.

"What now?" Oliver asked.

"Lead shielding, this isn't just for Bart. I think the Ridge Facility is being used to refine meteor rock," Chloe said worriedly. Dinah let out a gasp and then winced. If Clark was already on his way...

"Clark's in trouble." Chloe finished simply.

"Damn that farm boy." Dinah muttered angrily, "He just had to be the hero and rush off."

"Alright, team, let's hurry." Oliver said as he made his way back to change into his Green Arrow gear. Each of the rest of the team got ready in separate areas. This is the first Chloe had actually seen Dinah up close and in costume. She grinned at her.

"You do realize your costume's kind of slutty, right?" Chloe asked her with a grin. As she spotted the bodice and fishnets.

"My mom's design, not mine. I did take away the heeled boots though. Really couldn't see my self kicking butt in those." She told Chloe with a wink, "But the slutty angle does have it's advantages. It catches most petty criminals off guard."

She slipped on her jacket and moved to pull up the hood, but Oliver stopped her.

"Here, try this." He said as he tossed her a long blonde wig. She nodded and gave him a grateful smile. Once the wig was on she smiled brightly.

"I miss my blonde hair." She said as she admired the wig in the mirror, "Now this completes the ensemble. Let's go."

"Wait," AC said before they headed out, "What about code names?"

"Well, we've got ours and Bart's. We just need one for Dinah, Chloe, and Clark." Victor said as he thought about possibilities.

"Sorry, but mine has to be Black Canary. It's my vigilante title, and well, I like it." Dinah said with a determined glint in her eye.

Oliver nodded, "Okay, that's one down. Chloe?"

She looked genuinely surprised, "I get a code name?"

"Well, you monitoring surveillance and communications so we need to call you something." Oliver answered.

"I am?"

AC chuckled, "I'm guessing we'll have to come up with hers too?"

"Well, she'll be watching us, and we'll be reporting in to her. So . . ."

"Watchtower?" Dinah suggested, "It's what Bruce calls Alfred sometimes during his patrol."

"Sounds good to me." Oliver said with a nod, "And Clark?"

"Boy Scout." AC said automatically.

"Okay, so we're set. Let's go." Oliver said not even bothering to ask for an explanation. He didn't really need one. He knew why AC had thought of that. As a matter of fact he had a feeling they all knew why he had thought of that. Dinah and Arrow climbed up to the roof and down the side to were their bikes were hidden.

"Canary," He said just after she started her Canary Cycle.

"Yeah?" She as she placed her helmet on top of her head.

"Once we reach the facility, you stick with me, got it?" He said in a commanding tone.

"Got it, Green Bean. Now let's get out of here." She said with one final rev before she took off ahead of him.

He sighed, and chuckled, She was going to be an interesting added dynamic. He could already tell. He turned his ear piece on and instructed Victor, AC, and Chloe to follow in the Mobile Ops trailer. They were all to station them selves a safe distance away from the facility so as not to be detected.

"Canary, I'm talking to you especially. You're bike is way too damn loud." He grumbled.

"Please, you know you're just jealous." She scoffed. He could hear Victor and AC chuckling lightly over the feed. They pulled off into an area with heavy vegetation, and hid the bikes. Soon after Mobile Ops pulled up right behind them.

"Aquaman, take your position." Green Arrow ordered. AC nodded, told Chloe his position and left.

"Cyborg, Canary, you're with me. Watchtower, everything you need is inside. Blue prints, surveillance, and everything else under the sun. Let's head out, kids." He commanded as they marched toward the security perimeter.

They hid a safe distance away, and kept a look out for any guards that might complicate things.

"We got two comin' around the corner." Victor whispered as he nodded toward the fence.

Arrow nodded, "Be ready to infiltrate."

He lifted his bow and waited patiently for the perfect moment. Dinah had always been amazed by Ollie's skills. They were trained and honed from nothing basically where as her and AC had been born with their skills, and Victor's had been forced upon him. They all had a base to start off of. He'd started from scratch. It was the same with Bruce, Barbara, and Dick. She couldn't imagine doing that. Finally he released the arrow, and it landed directly in front of the guards. He had apparently filled some part of it with a type of knock out gas because those guards were out in seconds. As soon as those guards fell the three of them made a break for it. Once they reached a certain point they slowed their pace and approached the guards.

"Green Arrow to Watchtower, we're in position." Arrow said into his ear piece. They listened to Chloe instructing them about the security access panel, but when she began to explain how to rewire the box she saw Victor grin.

"Or...," He said as he ripped the front of the metal box off, "I can just jack in and shut the whole perimeter down."

"You can do that?" Chloe asked in awe and excitement.

Dinah grinned and restrained a chuckle that was forming in her throat. Of course Chloe would find that unbelievably cool.

"Queen Industries upgrade." He explained simply as he plugged himself in, "Accessing perimeter security...Perimeter neutralized."

"Aquaman, you're up." Green Arrow announced.

They headed toward the metal door that led to the interior of the building and it was little more than a few seconds later when Aquaman responded, "Perimeter breached, proceeding to target."

"Wow, you really are fast. Wonder why you couldn't use that speed against the Penguin years ago?" She asked over the feed with a grin.

"You realize you couldn't get away from either, right?" Came his wise-cracking reply.

Just as she was about to respond Victor kicked the metal door in. Her eyes widened at the sight. Impressive.

"You make one hell of a can opener." Oliver said as they marched on through.

"And you'd look good on a bag of green beans." Victor responded.

"Alright, we're in which way?" He asked Chloe.

"Refinement vault is a hundred meters south west. Still no word from Clark." Chloe said with a worried edge.

"If he's in there then we'll get him out. Let's go." Victor responded as he moved to head toward the vault.

"Uh...you've got a different mission." Arrow told him pointedly.

"You're the boss Robin Hood." He stated hesitantly as he ran off in the other direction.

"Wait, what mission? What are you doing?" Chloe asked curiously.

"That's what I'd like to know." Dinah said as she gave Oliver a strange, suspicious look.

"Just stick with me, remember?" He reminded her in leader tone.

"Yes sir, boss man sir." She said in a flat, dull, and sarcastic tone. They briskly marched a little further before pausing. Arrow pressed himself up against one of the corridor walls and Dinah followed his lead. They heard footsteps coming toward them.

Arrow briefly glanced around the corner, and held up two fingers in her direction. She nodded, and prepared herself to fight. As soon as they walked by they jumped them. She moved to kick one of the guards in the stomach, but her grabbed her foot. She spun and used her other leg to kick him across the face. He fell to the ground with a groan, and held his face. He stood back up slowly and moved to punch at her. She rolled her eyes and blocked his punch. She then kneed him in the stomach, and delivered a chop across the middle of his back when he hunched over in pain. He fell to the ground and smacked his head against the floor. She turned just in time to see Arrow flip his guard around by the wrist. He delivered a couple of punches to make sure the man was unconscious.

"Watchtower to Green Arrow and Black Canary, what is your status?" Chloe asked urgently.

Arrow stood and looked back at Canary, "Switching to Silent Running stand by for instructions."

She nodded and put her ear piece on the one-way setting. She could hear Chloe, but Chloe couldn't hear her.

"Now, will you tell me what we're doing?" She asked in agitation.

"Blowing this place sky high. Nice spine move, by the way." He said casually as he moved to touch his ear piece again, "Aquaman do your thing."

He then turned his ear piece off again, "Um, thanks, So _how_ are we going to do that? Blow this place up, I mean."

"We're sending Clark after Bart, and then we're placing charges, and hopefully sending a message to Lex Luthor." He said with a slight growl.

Fear flashed across her mind at the thought of facing the young Luthor. He would definitely recognize her with the blonde wig on. She reached to pull her hood over her head, but a gloved hand grabbed hers and stopped her.

"Don't be afraid of him, Dinah." Oliver told her with assurance, "You won't end up in one of these places again, trust me."

She gulped nervously and nodded as she withdrew her hand from her hood. Oliver gave her a small smile before snapping back into Green Arrow mode. The two of them stomped toward the vault. She saw movement out of the corner of her eye, and jerked Oliver into a small side corridor. Just in time to see a guard come around the corner. She hadn't thought about how she'd pulled him or where she shoved him _after_ she pulled him. Apparently she shoved him up against one of the walls in the small, narrow, dead end corridor. And there wasn't much room for her to back away. So what resulted was a very awkward position. There was a moment of intense silence where they merely stared at each other.

Oliver cleared his throat, and forced himself to look away, "Thanks."

She nodded and quickly stepped back into the larger hallway that lead to the vault. Oliver drew his bow, and another freaky looking arrow. They followed the guard that had just passed them into the vault.

"You're not supposed to be here." They heard him sneer as he pointed a gun at a weak, writhing mass on the floor.

Oliver released the arrow immediately, "Neither am I."

She grinned up at him and shook her head in amusement for two seconds before scurrying to Clark's side. She and Oliver supported him and helped him from the room.

"Are you alright?" She asked as she checked him over once they reached the outside of the room. Out of the corner of her eye she watched the lead door, to make sure it closed. She sensed something tense about Oliver's attitude now that she hadn't noticed before.

He nodded and gave her a grateful smile, "I'm fine."

That was the first kind exchange they'd had since that night in the barn, and it wasn't as hard to manage as she'd previously thought it would be. In fact now it seemed relatively easy. Why was that? Was it because he'd been trapped in a room with the only thing that could kill him? Was it because she had secretly been desperately worried about him? She didn't know, but she was keenly aware of Oliver's searing gaze on them. What was his deal?

"Green Arrow to Watchtower, Boy Scout's out of the woods." She heard Oliver say into his ear piece with a harsh undertone.

"Boy Scout?" Clark asked Dinah with a strange look on his face. Some how he looked passive and offended at the same time.

"Maybe if you hadn't ran off all half cocked you could have picked your own code name." Arrow said in a hostile tone, "You don't want to play for the team that's fine, but you need to be smart about it."

"Point taken." Clark said with a slight glare at the back of Ollie's head.

What was going on here? Was it a meeting of the egos or something else that she was completely clueless about?

"Where's Bart?" Clark asked in concern.

"Impulse." Dinah informed him with a grin.

"He didn't get to pick his own code name either." Oliver said with a trace of a smile on his lips. Green Arrow suddenly turned, and handed Clark an ear piece, "Watchtower will guide you to where he's probably being held, C'mon Dinah."

She nodded and smiled in Clark's direction before following him.

"What are you gonna be doing?" Clark asked in a confused tone.

Oliver merely turned and grinned at him, "What I do best."

That weird voice alteration thing was on again. She hated that thing. He sounded creepy when he used it. She followed after him as quick as she could, and once they were out of Clark's vision he handed her a few small metal charges, "Place these all around and meet me back here in five minutes."

She nodded and took off in the opposite direction of him. She placed the charges in areas with a lot of piping knowing it would cause a chain reaction and a bigger explosion. She cut it close a couple of times with some guards, but luckily none of them had seen her. After placing the last one she quickly made her way back to the spot where she and Arrow had separated. As she approached she heard the one voice that plagued her with worry constantly. That voice finding her was her worst fear.

"That's right, you heard me." She heard him talking. She looked to the side for a moment wondering where she could hide, and then thought back to Arrow's words. What was he going to do to her? She had the advantage at the moment. So, she stood her ground and waited for Arrow. Lex Luthor rounded the corner and froze. A malicious grin appeared on his face.

"Dinah Lance, or from the looks of it I should call you Black Canary. You know, I've been looking every where for you for quite some time now." He observed her attire and smiled.

"Yeah, well here I am jack ass." She said with a glare. She wasn't scared any more. She was angry.

"I don't care. I want a Level One Lock Down, no one gets in or out." He said into the walkie as he kept his gaze on her.

"A little late for that." Arrow's distorted voice said from behind her.

"Looks like you brought a friend." Lex said as he saw the figure out of the corner of his eye.

"Several, actually." She stated as she placed her hands on her hips.

"You've got ten minutes to get your people out of here before we blow this place off the map." Arrow said bluntly.

"You." Lex said coldly.

"You remember? I'm touched." Arrow answered.

"Well, it's a little hard to forget. Last time we met you put an arrow in my chest."

_When did that happen?_ Dinah asked inwardly with curiosity.

"And you put a bullet in mine, bygones?" Arrow said harshly.

_Once again, when did this happen?_ This was something she definitely should have known about.

"Thanks for returning her. She'll be very useful." Lex said as he made a move for Dinah.

"I'll be damned if you _ever_ come near me again." She hissed as she gave arrow a warning look before opening her mouth and issuing one of the loudest screams she could muster. Lex flew back against the wall as if forced by a great wind, and then shakily stood back up.

"Go to hell. Both of you." Lex said passively he glanced at Dinah before looking back at Arrow.

"You first." Oliver said as he raised his bow.

He released the arrow and it grazed Lex's face and hit the pipe behind him. Oliver took in the scene before motioning to Dinah that it was time to bolt. They took off down a corridor while Lex was distracted. She turned her ear piece back to two way, and Oliver issued a meeting point for the team. The first people they came across were Bart and Clark. Dinah quickly hugged Bart's shoulders before falling back into step beside Arrow.

"Can you superspeed?" Clark asked in concern.

"Yeah, I just-I need a minute to catch my breath." Bart explained.

"You know what, you're gonna have to catch it later." Oliver said as he tapped his ear piece, "Aquaman, Cyborg Rendezvous Alpha confirmed."

"We're on the move." She heard Cyborg say over the feed.

"Watchtower, have all Luthor's people cleared the building?" He asked.

"The last heat signatures are moving away from the north." Chloe responded.

"Wait a second, what are you doing?" Clark asked.

"What do you think I'm doin'? Do you want more of your friends to end up in here?" Oliver asked.

"Yeah, I'm voting no on that one." Bart said as he too gave Clark a pressured glance.

Dinah chose not to say anything, and merely pursed her lips together and gave Clark a stern look.

"Watchtower, are you sure every one's out of the building?" Clark asked as he placed his ear piece over his ear.

"One hundred percent positive." Chloe answered confidently.

Clark pulled down the ear piece and stared thoughtfully for a moment, then gave Dinah a side glance and said, "Alright, Let's do it."

They all met up at the Rendezvous, and set off the charges as soon as they were a safe distance from the building.

Dinah took a deep accomplished breath as they reached Mobile Ops. AC scooped her up and slung her around a couple of times before plating her feet firmly back on the ground. Victor gave her a very stiff hug. They didn't know each other that well so it was a little weird. Bart gave her a lingering hug and proceeded to try and hit on her. She exchanged awkward and victorious smiles with both Oliver and Clark. She gave Chloe a hug too. It felt good having done something useful. It felt good not hiding in the Kent's farm house. It felt good to be Dinah again. Clark invited everyone back to the farm for the night. Oliver said he would meet them all there in the morning. She saw Victor hand Ollie something that looked a lot like a flash drive, and she wondered what was going on, but Oliver left before she could ask.

* * *

Mrs. Kent made them all an amazing dinner, and she was still disgusted to watch Bart eat. She made generous helpings with Bart in mind, and they all ate their fill. It was a nice, relaxing dinner, but after it was over AC, Victor, and Bart pulled her up to her room for a chat. They all looked intense.

"What's going on?" She asked them curiously.

"We're probably going to be leaving the U.S. soon." Victor told her.

"What are you talking about?" She asked in confusion.

"Lex has several other 33.1 facilities. We found that out tonight while you and Ollie were setting up the explosives." AC said as he sat down beside her on her bed, "We figure the jolly green giant is gonna want to leave as soon as possible to take care of the rest of them."

"But the question is, Di, are you in?" Bart asked her seriously.

She stared at them all thoughtfully. Leave Smallville?

Well, she'd already told her self she couldn't hide forever, but to leave so soon...

Was it worth it? To give up the things she'd come to cherish in order to stop Lex? To prevent people from going through what she went through?

She knew it was the minute she asked herself the question, she looked up at the three men and nodded, "I'm in."

They smiled at her in approval, and AC rubbed her back comfortingly, "Welcome to the team, Dinah."

"So, which of you guys is gonna help me pack?" She asked them with a grin.

"Um, you know I think I'm still hungry." Bart said urgently as he streaked out of the room.

"I, uh, promised Mama Kent I'd walk Shelby for her." Victor said as he too hurried out of the room. AC opened his mouth for an excuse, but Dinah interrupted him.

"Don't even think about it. You're helping me whether you like it or not." She told him with a smirk.

"Aw, man." He whined.

* * *

By the next morning she had all of her bags packed and piled on top of her bed, and the trinkets she had slowly acquired over her time in Smallville were boxed up. The door suddenly opened and Clark stepped through. His eyes widened at the empty room.

"Where are you going?" He asked her immediately.

"Where ever the team goes." She told him seriously.

"You're leaving? For good?" He asked with a furrowed brow.

"Yeah, Clark, it's just time that I move on, and stop hiding." She told him with a sad smile.

"But you don't have to, Lex doesn't know that who you are. You could still stay." He said logically.

She smiled kindly at him, "I need to leave, Farmer Brown, I have to put my gifts to use for the greater good. And Oliver's team will allow me to do that."

He sighed and nodded in understanding, "Are we okay?"

"We are now, I'm not angry at you any more. I have no idea why I'm not...I'm just not." She said honestly.

"Good, I just wanted to apologize for the way things turned out between us. I never meant for that to happen." He said sincerely.

She nodded and squeezed his shoulder, "I know, and it's okay. I mean long story short I guess we just aren't _supposed_ to date."

"I do think you're amazing, if that's any consolation." He said with his charming Kent family smile.

She laughed in response and smiled up at him, "Surprisingly enough, it _is_ consolation. And I think your pretty amazing too, Kent."

He sighed and nodded, "The others are waiting for Oliver in the barn. I'll take your bags down to the drive."

She smiled, "Thanks, Clark. For everything."

"My pleasure, Dinah."

She walked down the steps and out to the barn while Clark gathered her belongings by the driveway. She didn't feel too bad about making him carry her bags thanks to his super abilities. She knew it would take him like two seconds to get it all done. Sure enough, Clark was already in the barn we she arrived. He flashed her a smug smile, and she rolled her eyes. She smiled at Chloe as she passed her outside the entrance. She was on her cell phone. She walked into the barn, and decided to stand in between Clark and AC.

She smiled at AC, and gave him a quick hug. Chloe made her way back into the barn.

"So the Daily Planet is running with the story that a gas explosion destroyed the _vacant_ Luthorcorp. Building down by the docks." Chloe said with a bemused tone as she sat on the steps that lead up to the loft.

"Vacant? It looks like the Luthor cover up machine is in full swing." Clark stated with an unsurprised tone.

"Well, at least we got Bart out before Lex ran him into an early grave." Chloe said.

"C'mon, no worries, I had plenty of juice left." Bart said in his usual cocky manner.

"Could have fooled me, the way you cleaned out Mama Kent's fridge." Victor said with a knowing look on his face.

"That's cause I like to stay fueled up." He bragged before speeding his way to Chloe's side, "In case I need to, uh, spring into action."

Dinah laughed and rolled her eyes at him.

Chloe chuckled, "I still have a boyfriend."

"Yeah, well, a man can dream, can't he?" He asked her with a wide grin.

"Now you know why we call him Impulse." AC stated with an amused look of his own.

"Impulse, Cyborg, Aquaman, Black Canary, Green Arrow...what do you guys call your team?" Clark asked curiously.

Bart practically jumped up to answer, "I don't know! I've been thinking, you know, we need something cool. Something like, uh, like, uh..."

"I was thinking about something with the word 'Justice' in it." Oliver said as he suddenly appeared in the barn. He smiled over at Dinah, "After all that's what Lex is gonna get a big dose of. Victor and AC were able to hack into the 33.1 mainframe before we blew the building."

"That was your other mission." Chloe said as realization dawned.

"Haven't met a computer yet, I couldn't crack wide open." Victor said with pride.

"What did you guys find out?" Clark asked.

"That Lex isn't satisfied playin' in his own back yard any more." AC stated heatedly.

"Luthorcorp. Is starting up divisions of 33.1 all across the globe." Oliver said with concern, "Where ever theres evidence of people with abilities...there'll be laboratories to do experiments on them."

"We can't let that happen." Clark said automatically.

"We won't." Dinah said as she moved from AC's side to stand beside Oliver.

"Gentlemen-"

Dinah cleared her throat loudly.

"-and Dinah." Oliver added with a chuckle.

"Thank you." She said as she beamed at him.

"Our first target is a large facility on the island of Corto Maltese. You guys know the drill. Wheels up in thirty minutes. Get your gear." He said simply. He turned his eyes on Dinah, "I saw your stuff outside, does that mean you're coming?"

"Wouldn't miss this one, Queenie." She said with a smirk as she patted his shoulder and made her way to Chloe. Chloe looked at her friend with a mixture of pride, shock, and sadness.

"You're leaving, huh?"

"Yep, Had to some time, and this is the best offer I've had in a long time." She told Chloe with a sad smile.

She nodded, "Alright, but be careful, and stay in touch."

"Definitely." She said with a smile and a hug before making her way back to AC, Victor, Bart, and Oliver.

"You comin', amigo?" Bart asked. Dinah didn't have to hear his answer. She already knew what it would be.

"Yeah, you got to come with us, man." AC added.

"We could use the big guns." Victor agreed.

"They're right-you know? You'd be a major asset to the team." Oliver said as he waited for a response.

Dinah smiled and waited for the answer she knew he'd give.

"I want to be a part of this, guys. I really do..." He said.

"But..." Dinah said as she gave him a knowing grin.

He smiled softly at her and then looked back at Oliver, "That problem I told you about, the one that I caused, I have to take care of that first."

"This isn't the end of the story, Clark." Oliver said as he shook Clark's hand, "This is just the beginning."

He pulled his hand back and acknowledged Chloe as they began to walk away.

"C'mon, boys-and girl." He added quickly before Dinah could call him on it, "Let's go save the world."

They left the barn in a dramatic flourish, and loaded into the limo Oliver had brought with him.

"I had your stuff put in the trunk already." Oliver informed her, "You have a lot of crap, you know that?"

She laughed and winked at him, "Yeah, well, I'm a girl, get used to it."

* * *

_That's the end of "A New Purpose"._

_Now, heres my internal conflict. (will now I guess it's outward)_

_I'm still debating as to continue this now or wait to see what Al and Miles do with the League in the upcoming season. I'm a little worried about continuing now that they're bringing back Oliver Queen and the League. _

_What do you guys think? _

_Should I wait?_

_Or..._

_Should I keep writing and not worry about the coming season's plot lines?_

_You tell me,_

_angellwings_


	12. Sneak Peek Pretty Bird Prologue: Uncaged

**_Okay guys, heres a passage from the Pretty Bird Prologue, enjoy! and head on over to Pretty Bird for more!_**

**_Note: this is not meant as an "epilogue" this IS a prologue for another story. I posted it here to let everyone know that the SEQUEL is up and ready to be read. I hope that you will all read the sequel and I hope you all enjoy it even more than this one. Thanks for reading!_**

Pretty Bird

Prologue: Uncaged

by angellwings

Ted Grant grinned and shook his head at the pair sparring on the mat in front of him. Dinah had added her own flare to the technique and form he taught her, and she was using it to take down guys bigger than her like they were smurfs. AC hit the ground with a grunt.

"You know if this fight had happened in the water..."

"Cut the crap, Chicken of the Sea. I beat you fair and square." She told him with a smirk as she helped him up.

"Watch that mouth of yours, Toucan Sam, it'll get you in trouble one day." Victor said as he approached the mat, "I believe it's my turn."

"No powers, Tin Man. This fight is completely civilian." Dinah told him in warning.

"Oh don't worry, I can take you with out the fists of steel." He grinned.

"Alright you two. Keep it clean." Ted said as they began to circle each other.

"Oh, I'm not the one you have to worry about, Uncle Ted." Dinah said playfully.

"You're just begging for a beating aren't you little girl?" Victor asked in return with an arched eyebrow.

"Okay, less talk more violence." Bart cheered from the sidelines.

"I wouldn't be too eager for them to finish, Bart." Oliver told him, "You're next."

Bart quickly paled at the idea. A good fifteen minute spar ensued between Dinah and Victor before he landed on the mat for the last time.

"Better luck next time, Tin Can." Dinah boasted before turning toward Bart, "Okay, kid, it's you and me now."

Bart looked at Ted fearfully, "You want me to die, don't you?"

"No, Rookie, I want you to learn." He told the young man with a chuckle.

Bart sighed and stepped onto the mat, and seconds later he was sent sliding across it.

Dinah made a motion as if she were dusting off her hands, "Well, that was easy. Next?"

"Don't get too cocky you've still got me to deal with." Oliver announced.

"You actually think you can take me rich boy?" She asked with a arched eyebrow.

"Don't forget I survived being stranded on a deserted island...I HAD to fend for myself." He reminded her coolly.

She grinned and crossed her arms over her chest, "So did Lex Luthor."

The other four men in the room grimaced and looked away from the pair.

"It's on now, Pretty Bird." He said with a glare as he took a stance in front of her.

"I'm shaking in my fishnets, Green Bean." She smirked.

* * *

**_Head over to "Pretty Bird" for the rest! _**

**_You can search for it or find it on my profile page!_**

**_angellwings_**


End file.
